title: A coarse-graining procedure for polymer melts applied to 1,4-polybutadiene.
abstract: We present a coarse-graining procedure for homopolymer melts mapping intra- as well as inter-molecular interactions from a chemically realistic united atom description to a bead-spring type molecular model. On the coarse-grained level the repeat units interact through bond-length and bond angle potentials and a non-bonded Lennard-Jones type interaction. The latter one is of the 7,4 form and softer than the typically employed 12,6 interactions. The coarse-graining of the intramolecular interactions follows well developed procedures, however, we point out in which way the non-bonded intramolecular interactions in the chemically realistic model should be treated. The parameters of the non-bonded interaction on the coarse level are determined by matching the zero pressure isobar of the chemically realistic model of a 1,4-polybutadiene melt. For the coarse-grained model we perform melt simulations at several temperatures and compare structural and dynamic properties with the behavior of the chemically realistic model.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, Staudinger Weg 7, D-55099, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Strauch
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yelash
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Paul