Unfolding a collapsed macromolecule: a first-order phase transition

Pik-Yin Lai,

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 1995, vol. 221, issue 1, 233-240

Abstract: Using a simple phenomenological mean-field model and Monte Carlo simulation, we investigate a collapsed macromolecular chain in poor solvent conditions under the action of a force to unwind it. We show that the macromolecule changes from the collapsed state to the stretched state via a first-order transition as the stretching force is increased. The phase diagram is calculated which consists of a first-order line with a tricritical end point. These analytical results are confirmed by Monte Carlo simulation using the bond-fluctuation model. The first-order transition is observed clearly in the data and a strong hysteresis effect is associated with the transition. Possible connections to molecular gateway and memory devices in chemical engineering are also explored.

Date: 1995
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:221:y:1995:i:1:p:233-240

DOI: 10.1016/0378-4371(95)00239-4

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