Monte Carlo simulations of a single polystyrene chain in spherical confinement

Abstract We report on Monte Carlo simulations of a single coarse-grained polystyrene chain in spherical confinement. To this end we employ a variant of the freely rotating chain model, the parameters of which are chosen to mimic polystyrene in good solvent conditions. Entanglements are analyzed as a function of molecular weight and capsid radius to provide an educated guess about the structure of a single polystyrene chain in a miniemulsion droplet. We also show that significant knotting occurs first when the radius of the confining sphere falls below the chainʼs radius of gyration.

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