UNWINDING OF POLYMER-CHAINS UNDER FORCES OR FLOWS

Authors
BROCHARDWYART F HERVET H PINCUS P
Citation
F. Brochardwyart et al., UNWINDING OF POLYMER-CHAINS UNDER FORCES OR FLOWS, Europhysics letters, 26(7), 1994, pp. 511-516
Citations number
8
Categorie Soggetti
Physics
Journal title
Europhysics letters → ACNP
ISSN journal
02955075
Volume
26
Issue
7
Year of publication
1994
Pages
511 - 516
Database
ISI
SICI code
0295-5075(1994)26:7<511:UOPUFO>2.0.ZU;2-K
Abstract
With optical tweezers plus fluorescent labels it is now possible to fo rce, and to observe, the stretching and the relaxation of a single pol ymer chain. We calculate here the unwinding of a tethered, flexible, c hain (N monomers) immersed in a solvent if, at time t = 0 starting fro m rest, one imposes either a flow (V) of the solvent, or an external f orce f on the free end.