title: Stretching semiflexible filaments with quenched disorder.
abstract: We study the effect of quenched randomness in the arc-length dependent spontaneous curvature of a wormlike chain under tension. In the weakly bending approximation in two dimensions, we obtain analytic results for the force-elongation curve and the width of transverse fluctuations. We compare quenched and annealed disorder and conclude that the former cannot always be reduced to a simple change in the stiffness of the pure system. We also discuss the effect of a random transverse force on the stretching response of a wormlike chain without spontaneous curvature.
authors.affiliation: Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, J J Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Panayotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Benetatos
authors.forename: Eugene M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Terentjev
mesh_terms: D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D008958:Models, Molecular; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D011108:Polymers