Polymer Physics Disentangled

Polymers have transformed every aspect of human life, from disposable plastic bags and bottles, soft contact lenses and band-aids, to car tires and aerospace composites. To satisfy these demands, the chemical industry produces over 400 million tons of polymers each year. Moreover, all of us are made of biopolymers encoded in genes via DNA - a long-chain, double-helical, biological macromolecule. Polymer Physics Disentangled presents a comprehensive overview of the core concepts of polymer physics. It is intended for undergraduate and graduate students with a basic knowledge of calculus, physics, and chemistry, but it can also be used as a reference book by scientists and engineers working in fields of materials science and soft matter. In addition to the classical topics of polymer science such as individual chain properties, polymer solutions and melts, networks and gels, and polymer viscoelasticity and dynamics, the book discusses topics related to polymer brushes and stars, solutions and gels of charged polymers, and self-assembly and microphase separation of block copolymers. The material discussion is illustrated by examples with solutions which are designed to improve problem-solving skills, enabling readers to tackle advanced topics of modern polymer science that go beyond the scope of the book. The presented materials are augmented by over 300 figures illuminating concepts with examples from the current literature. Each chapter concludes with a problem set, totalling over 130 questions.