Andrey V. Dobrynin

Melts of Brush Copolymers: From Microphase Separation to Liquid-Crystalline Order

Abstract We use coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to investigate structural organization in melts of brush copolymers as a function of side-chain grafting density, backbone-side-chain miscibility, and backbone rigidity. At low grafting densities, decreasing miscibilit...

Toeplitz matrix formulation of polymer physics: From single chain statistics to liquid-crystalline order

We develop a Toeplitz matrix formulation of polymer statistics that provides a unified, analytically tractable description of flexible and semiflexible chains. Bond-vector correlations are encoded in a Toeplitz matrix, with a single parameter controlling the decay of orientationa...

Nonlinear Elasticity of Entangled Networks and Gels

Abstract We develop a molecular theory of the nonlinear elasticity of entangled polymer networks and gels that incorporates both strand rigidity and finite extensibility. Network strands are represented by Toeplitz chains of correlated Gaussian bonds, with the bond-correlation pa...