Abstract
A spectacular success of statistical mechanics in recent years has been in the explanation of polymeric phenomena which has allowed an extension of the theory of single polymer chains, i.e. of very dilute solutions, to be extended to more concentrated solutions, i.e. those where polymers strongly overlap, and further to melts and more recently to glasses. There is now a sufficient body of work to justify books on recent advances and this article will constantly refer to(~e±l book of de Gennes 'Scaling Concepts in Polymer Physics' , which is much wider than its title suggests and is written with exceptional clarity, and the book by M. Doi(,2)and the present author 'The Theory of Polymer Dynamics' This latter contains full technical details of recent advances for both flexible and rigid polymers and also contains a large bibliography. In addition the experimental situation is comprehensively covered b~ Ferry in his book 'Viscoelastic Properties of Polymers' ) I will present a view of the current situation in 1986 in what I hope is a reasonably simple picture, leaving the technical detail to these texts, in particular to Doi and Edwards.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
