Web Release Date: November 8,
Conformational Properties of Dendritic Homopolymers with Interacting Branching Points
Chemistry Department, University of Ioannina, 45110 Ioannina, Greece
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Ioannina, 45110 Ioannina, Greece
Received May 14, 2007
Revised Manuscript Received August 30, 2007
Abstract:
A microscopic model is used to determine analytically the macroscopic conformational properties of dendritic polymers with interactive branching points. We describe the dependence on the number g of generations, the molecular weight N of each branch, and the functionalities f and fc of the branching points and the core as well as the quality of the solvent. A comparison is given between the analytical results and the results from Monte Carlo simulations up to g = 4 and fc = f = 3. Three mean square distances are calculated which determine the extension of the k shell from the origin, the sizes of the branches in each generation, and the average distance between symmetrical points on different dendrons. On the basis of these distances, the dependence on the microscopic characteristics of the dendritic polymer of the positions of the terminal groups and the size of the branches in each generation are analyzed. Effective angles between symmetrical points on different dendrons are used for the first time to describe the degree of segregation of different dendrons the possibility of entrances into the matrix of the polymer as well as the amount of the vacancies in its interior.
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