LATERAL INSTABILITIES IN A GRAFTED LAYER IN A POOR SOLVENT

The effect of solvent quality on a layer of end-grafted polymers is de termined using the random phase approximation combined with a numerica l mean field analysis. For sufficiently poor solvents, the laterally h omogeneous grafted layer is linearly unstable to fluctuations tangenti al to the grafting plane. In the unstable regime, the grafted layer fo rms a ''dimpled'' surface in which the depth and separation of the dim ples depend on chain length, solvent quality, and grafting density.