Polymer Physics A Molecular Approach

Polymer structures can be roughly divided into two categories, i.e. single-chainstructure and their assembled structures. In the first category, single-chainstructures include the chemical structures and the conformations of polymer chains.The chemical structures can be described at two separate levels, i.e. intrinsic andextrinsic levels, corresponding to their roles in the determination of polymerbehaviors. The intrinsic factors are common for the same species of polymersamples, including the chain semi-flexibility and the complicated inter-chaininteractions. The extrinsic factors are specific for the individual cases of polymersamples, including molecular weights and their distributions, molecular topologicalarchitectures, and the regularities of chemical sequences and their connectionsalong the chain. The conformation of polymer chains focuses on the variations ofchain conformation under various circumstances. In the second category, theassembly structures of polymer chains show both static and dynamic aspects. Forthe single-component homopolymer systems, the static structures include amorphousstates, oriented states, liquid crystal states and crystalline states, whosedomains can interwoven into the texture of materials. For the polymer-basedmulti-component systems, the above states can co-exist even in the mixed orseparated phases of solutions, blends, copolymers and composite