“School of Physic”

Back to Papers Home
Back to Papers of School of Physic

Paper   IPM / Physic / 13095
School of Physics
  Title:   Global Analysis of the Ground-State Wrapping Conformation of a Charged Polymer on an Oppositely Charged Nano-Spheres
  Author(s): 
1.  H. Boroudjerdi
2.  A. Naji
3.  R.R. Netz
  Status:   Published
  Journal: Eur. Phys. J. E
  Vol.:  37
  Year:  2014
  Pages:   21
  Supported by:  IPM
  Abstract:
We investigate the wrapping conformations of a strongly adsorbed polymer chain on an oppositely charged nano-sphere by employing a reduced (dimensionless) representation of a primitive chain-sphere model. This enables us to determine the global phase behavior of the chain conformation in a wide range of values for the system parameters including the chain contour length, its linear charge density and persistence length as well as the nano-sphere charge and radius, and also the salt concentration in the bathing solution. The phase behavior of a charged chain-sphere complex can be described in terms of a few distinct conformational symmetry classes (phases) separated by continuous or discontinuous transition lines which are determined by means of appropriately defined (order) parameters. Our results can be applied to a wide class of strongly coupled polymer-sphere complexes including, for instances, complexes that comprise a mechanically flexible or semiflexible polymer chain or an extremely short or long chain and, as a special case, include the previously studied example of DNA-histone complexes.

Download TeX format
back to top
scroll left or right