Dresden 2009 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik

DY 12: Poster I

DY 12.38: Poster

Dienstag, 24. März 2009, 14:30–16:30, P1A

Effect of disorder on equilibrium conformations of semiflexible polymers — •Sebastian Schöbl, Klaus Kroy, and Wolfhard Janke — Institut für Theoretische Physik, Universität Leipzig

The structure and behaviour of biological cells is essentially affected by the biomechanical properties of semiflexible polymers. In the form of networks, such as the cytoskeleton, they build up the basic scaffold of eukaryotic cells. In order to study the mechanical properties of these highly complex systems, both interactions of the polymer with the surrounding network and further perturbing influences have to be taken into account.

We investigate the equilibrium structure of semiflexible polymers in different potential landscapes by Monte Carlo simulations. In our simulations we use two approaches, a lattice and an off-lattice model. In the first, the polymer is represented by a self-avoiding walk on a lattice with defects that represent the disorder. In the second, the semiflexible polymer is described by a Heisenberg chain, a discretized wormlike chain model. Relevant observables such as the end-to-end distribution function and the tangent-tangent correlation function are discussed. The disorder potential is modeled according to the underlying experimental biological system.