Issue |
Europhys. Lett.
Volume 64, Number 4, November 2003
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 536 - 542 | |
Section | Interdisciplinary physics and related areas of science and technology | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1209/epl/i2003-00263-9 | |
Published online | 01 November 2003 |
First-order conformational transition of annealed polyelectrolytes in a poor solvent
Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und Grenzflächenforschung
P.O. Box, D-14424 Potsdam, Germany
Corresponding author: seidel@mpikg-golm.mpg.de
Received:
15
May
2003
Accepted:
9
September
2003
We present Monte Carlo simulations on annealed polyelectrolytes in poor solvent. Increasing the chemical potential of the charges, which is equal to the pH of the solution except for a trivial additive constant, we find the first-order phase transition between a weakly charged globule and a highly charged extended chain predicted by theory. Starting from an elongated highly charged conformation and increasing the coupling strength , the degree of stretching of the chain at first increases similarly to quenched polyelectrolytes. However, on reaching some upper threshold u*, the chain collapses back into a weakly charged state.
PACS: 82.35.Rs – Polyelectrolytes / 36.20.Ey – Conformation (statistics and dynamics) / 87.15.Aa – Theory and modeling; computer simulation
© EDP Sciences, 2003
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