MOLECULAR-DYNAMICS SIMULATION STUDY OF ADSORPTION OF POLYMER-CHAINS WITH VARIABLE DEGREE OF RIGIDITY .1. STATIC PROPERTIES

The adsorption of a single polymer chain onto a solid surface is inves tigated by molecular dynamics simulations. The chain is composed of ma ss points interacting via a truncated Lennard-Jones potential, i.e., t he excluded volume interaction is taken into account, and grafted to t he surface with one end. The average adsorption degree is calculated f or various chain lengths (N = 16, 32, 64, 128) and adsorption energies . In addition, the scaling behavior of the adsorption degree and the r adius of gyration is investigated. The adsorption degree and the avera ge length of loops and tails are obtained for chains of various stiffn esses. In this context, we find that stiffer chains adsorb more easily . Moreover, the distribution of the mass points perpendicular to the s urface as well as the orientation of the bonds with respect to the sur face is discussed for various adsorption energies and stiffnesses. (C) 1996 American Institute of Physics.