Self-consistent-field method brush

A successful theoretical description of polymer brushes has now been established, explaining the morphology and most of the brush behavior, based on scaling laws as developed by Alexander [180] and de Gennes [181]. More sophisticated theoretical models (self-consistent field methods [182], statistical mechanical models [183], numerical simulations [184] and recently developed approaches [185]) refined the view of brush-type systems and broadened the application of the theoretical models to more complex systems, although basically confirming the original predictions [186]. A comprehensive overview of theoretical models and experimental evidence of polymer bmshes was recently compiled by Zhao and Brittain [187] and a more detailed survey by Netz and Adehnann [188]. 

Figure 6.13. The height of a polymer brush in a chemically identical matrix of equal degree of polymerisation 1000 as predicted by the scaling theory and calculated by the numerical self-consistent mean-field method. The SCF calculations were done using a...

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