Search results for "Chemical physics"

Molecular dynamics simulations of the glass transition in polymer melts

2004

Computer simulations of polymer models have contributed strongly to our understanding of the glass transition in polymer melts. The ability of the simulation to provide information on experimentally not directly accessible quantities like the detailed spatial arrangement of the particles allows for stringent tests of theoretical concepts about the glass transition and provides additional insight for the interpretation of experimental data. Comparing coarse-grained simulations of a bead-spring model and chemically realistic simulations of 1,4-polybutadiene the importance of dihedral barriers for the glass transition phenomenon can be elucidated.

Deuteron n.m.r. in relation to the glass transition in polymers

1985

Abstract 2H n.m.r. is introduced as a tool for investigating slow molecular motion in the glass transition region of amorphous polymers. In particular, we compare 2H spin alignment echo spectra of chain deuterated polystyrene with models for restricted rotational Brownian motion. Molecular motion in the polystyrene-toluene system has been investigated by analysing 2H n.m.r. of partially deuterated polystyrene and toluene, respectively. The diluent mobility in the mixed glass has been decomposed into ‘solid’ and ‘liquid’ components where the respective average correlation times differ by more than 5 decades.

Entanglement in polystyrene detected by translational diffusion of photo-labeled molecules

1988

Mesure des coefficients de diffusion de polystyrenes marques et comparaison avec une equation phenomenologique reliant la masse moleculaire critique entre les enchevetrements Mc a ces masses moleculaires respectives de la chaine diffusant et de la matrice. Comparaison avec les theories recentes

Artifacts in Light Scattering Experiments Using Opaque Scattering Screens on the Example of Spinodal Decomposition

1996

An Alternate Interpretation of Polymer/Solvent Jump Size Units for Free-Volume Diffusion Models

1996

Polystyrene/toluene mutual-diffusion coefficients have been measured as a function of temperature in the limit of infinite solvent dilution. The solvent to polymer jump size unit ratio (ξ) was determined from the Vrentas−Duda free-volume diffusion model for polymer self-diffusion and is in excellent agreement with values evaluated from solvent self- and binary mutual-diffusion coefficient data. Comparison of the free-volume model to a version of the Kirkwood−Riseman theory, modified for diffusion at infinite dilution under non-ϑ conditions, suggests that ξ follows the temperature dependence of the root-mean-squared end-to-end distance of the polystyrene and can be estimated without the use …

Single molecule probing of dynamics in supercooled polymers

2011

6 pages; International audience; Fluorescence experiments with single BODIPY molecules embedded in a poly(methyl acrylate) matrix have been performed at various temperatures in the supercooled regime. By using pulsed excitation, fluorescence lifetime and linear dichroism time trajectories were accessible at the same time. Both observables have been analyzed without data binning. While the linear dichroism solely reflects single particle dynamics, the fluorescence lifetime observable depends on the molecular environment, so that the dynamics from the polymer host surrounding a chromophore contributes to this quantity. We observe that the lifetime correlation decays slightly faster than polar…

Interfaces in immiscible polymer blends: A Monte Carlo simulation approach on the CRAY T3E

1999

Polymeric materials pose a challenge for Monte Carlo simulations because of the widely spread length and time scales involved. Using large scale computer simulations we investigate the interfacial structure in a partially compatible polymer mixture. The problem is studied in the framework of a coarse grained lattice model - the bond fluctuation model on the simple cubic lattice, choosing N = 32 and lattice linear dimensions L × L × D up to 512 × 512 × 64. We employ a two dimensional geometric decomposition scheme to implement this algorithm on the CRAY T3E. The algorithm scales very well with the number of processors. The structure of polymer coils near interfaces between coexisting phases …

Monte Carlo simulations of chain dynamics in polymer brushes

1994

The bond-fluctuation model of polymer chains has been used to study layers of end-grafted polymers anchoring at repulsive walls for a broad range of chain length, grafting densities and solvent quality. The dynamics of monomers and associated relaxation times are investigated and interpreted by phenomenological theories and scaling arguments. The case is also considered where a chain is cut off from its anchor point and the chain is subsequently expelled from the brush. Both the velocity with which the chain leaves the brush and the associated conformational changes (chain contraction etc.) are analysed and interpreted in terms of recent theoretical concepts.

A comparison of neutron scattering studies and computer simulations of polymer melts

2000

Abstract Neutron scattering and computer simulations are powerful tools for studying structural and dynamical properties of condensed matter systems in general and of polymer melts in particular. When neutron scattering studies and quantitative atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of the same material are combined, synergy between the methods can result in exciting new insights into polymer melts not obtainable from either method separately. We present here an overview of our recent efforts to combine neutron scattering and atomistic simulations in the study of melt dynamics of polyethylene and polybutadiene. Looking at polymer segmental motion on a picosecond time scale, we show how at…

Insight in NLO Polymer Material Behavior from Langevin Dynamic Modeling of Chromophore Poling

2011

Calculation of chromophore polar order, i.e. the polarization of nonlinear optically (NLO) active polymers poled by external field, is challenging. One possible solution is to reproduce the orientation polarization of chromophores under external field using Langevin dynamics (LD) molecular modeling. The present work investigates the influence of chromophore dipole moment, density and field extent on NLO efficiency and polarization/relaxation dynamics. Results of simulations convince us, that the method is applicable for modeling real NLO polymers. In the spotlight of this investigation we would like to describe a NLO polymer as a “ferrofluid” where chromophores are active particles or elect…