To quantify the swelling response of polyelectrolyte dendrimers in aqueous
solutions as affected by changes in solution conditions, we have studied ei
ghth generation, G8, poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers in D2O using small
-angle neutron scattering. The charge density is manipulated by varying the
pH of the solution in order to protonate and deprotonate the primary and t
ertiary amines. The coherent scattered intensity at high q values yields si
ze information from the form factor of individual dendrimers. The distance
distribution functions of the dendrimers in a variety of experimental situa
tions were determined by indirect Fourier transform. For all the conditions
studied, we find that the size of G8 dendrimers is essentially insensitive
to variations of the pH (4.7 < pH < 10.1) and of ionic strength (up to 3 M
of NaCl). In all cases, the scattering curves yield density profiles that
correspond well to a uniform sphere with a radius of gyration R-G = 4.0 +/-
0.15 nm. We conclude that the dendrimer size is essentially independent of
the charge density or ionic strength of the solvent, contrary to the predi
ctions of current models and simulations.