2015/01/13 by Narges Nikoofard, Nikoofard, Narges, S. Mohammad Hoseinpoor +4 · 2 citations
Engineering · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Carbon Nanotubes in Composites #FOS: Physical sciences #Force Microscopy Techniques and Applications #Nanopore and Nanochannel Transport Studies #Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft) #cond-mat.soft
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1501.02955
arxiv created 2015/01/13 · openalex publication_date 2015/01/13 · arxiv updated 2015/01/14 · openalex created_date 2022/10/06 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The de Gennes' blob model is extensively used in different problems of polymer physics. This model is theoretically applicable when the number of monomers inside each blob is large enough. For confined flexible polymers, this requires the confining geometry to be much larger than the monomer size. In this manuscript, the opposite limit of polymer in nano-slits with one to several monomers width is studied, using molecular dynamics simulations. Extension of the polymer inside nanoslits, confinement force on the plates, and the effective spring constant of the confined polymer are investigated. Despite of the theoretical limitations of the blob model, the simulation results are explained with the blob model very well. The agreement is observed for the static properties and the dynamic spring constant of the polymer. A theoretical description of the conditions under which the dynamic spring constant of the polymer is independent of the small number of monomers inside blobs is given. Our results on the limit of applicability of the blob model can be useful in the design of nanotechnology devices.