Excluded volume effects general features

The present chapter aims to describe some typical contributions from recent studies on stiff polymers in dilute solution. We will be mainly interested in (1) applicability of the wormlike chain model to actual polymers, (ii) validity of the hydrodynamic theories [2-4] recently developed for this model, and (iii) the onset of the excluded-volume effect on the dimensions of semi-flexible polymers. Yamakawa [5, 6] has generalized the wormlike chain model to one that he named the helical wormlike chain. In a series of papers he and his collaborators have made a great many efforts to formulate its static and dynamic properties in dilute solution. In fact, the theoretical information obtained is now comparable in both breadth and depth to that of the wotmlike chain (see Ref. [6] for an overview). Unfortunately, however, most of the derived expressions are too complex to be of use for quantitative anal) sis and interpretation of experimental data. Thus, we only have a few to be considered with reference to the practical aspects of the helical wormlike chain, and have to be content with mentioning the definition and some basic features of this novel model. 

Both of the above approaches rely in most cases on classical ideas that picture the atoms and molecules in the system interacting via ordinary electrical and steric forces. These interactions between the species are expressed in terms of force fields, i.e., sets of mathematical equations that describe the attractions and repulsions between the atomic charges, the forces needed to stretch or compress the chemical bonds, repulsions between the atoms due to then-excluded volumes, etc. A variety of different force fields have been developed by different workers to represent the forces present in chemical systems, and although these differ in their details, they generally tend to include the same aspects of the molecular interactions. Some are directed more specifically at the forces important for, say, protein structure, while others focus more on features important in liquids. With time more and more sophisticated force fields are continually being introduced to include additional aspects of the interatomic interactions, e.g., polarizations of the atomic charge clouds and more subtle effects associated with quantum chemical effects. Naturally, inclusion of these additional features requires greater computational effort, so that a compromise between sophistication and practicality is required. 

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