title: Exploring the folding pattern of a polymer chain in a single crystal by combining single-molecule force spectroscopy and steered molecular dynamics simulations.
abstract: Understanding the folding pattern of a single polymer chain within its single crystal will shed light on the mechanism of crystallization. Here, we use the combined techniques of atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based single-molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS) and steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations to study the folding pattern of a polyethylene oxide (PEO) chain in its single crystal. Our results show that the folding pattern of a PEO chain in the crystal formed in dilute solution follows the adjacent re-entry folding model. While in the crystal obtained from the melt, the nonadjacent folding with large and irregular loops contributes to big force fluctuations in the force-extension curves. The method established here can offer a novel strategy to directly unravel the chain-folding pattern of polymer single crystals at single-molecule level.
authors: State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun, P R China.
authors: Yu
authors: Y
authors: Song
authors: Wei
authors: W
authors: Feng
authors: Kai
authors: K
authors: Liu
authors: Peng
authors: P
authors: Yang
authors: Wenke
authors: W
authors: Zhang
authors: Xi
authors: X
authors: Zhang