Eur. Phys. J. E 8, 461-464 (2002)
DOI: 10.1140/epje/i2002-10046-8

Rapid Note

On the origin of the heterogeneous orientation dynamics of semiflexible polymers in solutions

B. Loppinet¹, G. Fytas^{1, 2}, G. Petekidis¹, T. Sato³ and G. Wegner<sup>2

1</sup>  FO.R.T.H.-Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, P.O. Box 1527, 71110 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
²  Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, P.O. Box 3148, D-55021 Mainz, Germany
³  Department of Macromolecular Science, Osaka University, 1-1 Mackikaneyawa-cho, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan

benoit@iesl.forth.gr

(Received 4 June 2002 Online publication 16 October 2002)

Abstract
Collective rotational motion in nondilute isotropic solutions of semirigid chains is sensitively probed by depolarized light scattering over a broad time range. The bimodal shape and the peculiar dependence of the orientational relaxation function on the scattering angle might arise from the coupling between orientational and shear modes of molecular motion (P.G. de Gennes, Mol. Cryst. Liq. Cryst. 12, 193 (1971)). The dynamic heterogeneity, i.e. the separation of the time scales and the shape of the relaxation functions appears to be system specific.

PACS
78.35.+c - Brillouin and Rayleigh scattering; other light scattering.
82.35.Lr - Physical properties of polymers.


© EDP Sciences, Società Italiana di Fisica, Springer-Verlag 2002