Molecular shape of Semi-flexible Bottlebrush Polymers

Cacace, Cristina (2024) Molecular shape of Semi-flexible Bottlebrush Polymers. Master's Internship Report, Biomedical Engineering.

Preview	Text mBME2024CristinaCacace.pdf Download (5MB) | Preview
	Text toestemming_ Cristina Cacace _ degree programme_ Biomedical Engineering.pdf Restricted to Registered users only Download (131kB)

Abstract

Bottlebrush polymers (BBPs) are a category of branched polymers that have drawn much interest in polymer science due to their diverse range of applications. The properties of these polymers can be modified by adjusting architectural parameters such as grafting density and the degree of polymerization of the side chains and backbone. For this reason, a significant number of experimental and computational studies have been carried out to investigate the conformations of BBPs under various conditions. This study explores the conformational properties and static structure of flexible and semi-flexible bottlebrush polymers in dilute solutions using molecular dynamics simulations with a coarse-grained model. Specifically, semi-flexible polymers are of particular interest due to their unique mechanical and structural behaviors, which remain underexplored in current research. We investigate the key dependencies between conformational properties and structural parameters, particularly focusing on the radius of gyration and the persistence length as functions of varying degrees of polymerization and stiffness. The results reveal a strong correlation between the radius of gyration and increasing backbone length, which is further affected by the introduction of polymer stiffness.

Item Type:	Thesis (Master's Internship Report)
Supervisor name:	Giuntoli, A.
Degree programme:	Biomedical Engineering
Thesis type:	Master's Internship Report
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	08 Jul 2024 10:15
Last Modified:	08 Jul 2024 10:15
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/33108

Actions (login required)

View Item