Universal scaling, entanglements, and knots of model chain molecules.
By identifying the maximally random jammed state of freely jointed chains of tangent hard spheres we are able to determine the distinct scaling regimes characterizing the dependence of chain dimensions and topology on volume fraction. Calculated distributions of (i) the contour length of the primitive paths and (ii) the number of entanglements per chain agree remarkably well with recent theoretical predictions in all scaling regimes. Furthermore, our simulations reveal a hitherto unsuspected connection between purely intramolecular (knots) and intermolecular (entanglements) topological constraints.
Institute for Optoelectronics and Microsystems, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
Katerina
K
Foteinopoulou
Nikos Ch
NCh
Karayiannis
Manuel
M
Laso
Martin
M
Kröger
Marc L
ML
Mansfield