Response of Single Polymers to Localized Step Strains

Abstract

In this paper, the response of single three-dimensional phantom and self-avoiding polymers to localized step strains are studied for two cases in the absence of hydrodynamic interactions: (i) polymers tethered at one end with the strain created at the point of tether, and (ii) free polymers with the strain created in the middle of the polymer. The polymers are assumed to be in their equilibrium state before the step strain is created. It is shown that the strain relaxes as a power-law in time $t$ as $t^{-\eta}$. While the strain relaxes as $1/t$ for the phantom polymer in both cases; the self-avoiding polymer relaxes its strain differently in case (i) than in case (ii): as $t^{-(1+\nu)/(1+2\nu)}$ and as $t^{-2/(1+2\nu)}$ respectively. Here $\nu$ is the Flory exponent for the polymer, with value $\approx0.588$ in three dimensions. Using the mode expansion method, exact derivations are provided for the $1/t$ strain relaxation behavior for the phantom polymer. However, since the mode expansion method for self-avoiding polymers is nonlinear, similar theoretical derivations for the self-avoiding polymer proves difficult to provide. Only simulation data are therefore presented in support of the $t^{-(1+\nu)/(1+2\nu)}$ and the $t^{-2/(1+2\nu)}$ behavior. The relevance of these exponents for the anomalous dynamics of polymers are also discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure; minor errors corrected, introduction slightly modified and references expanded; to appear in Phys. Rev.