Abstract
We examine the role of the condensing agent in the formation of polyelectrolyte bundles, via grand-canonical Monte Carlo simulations. Following recent experiments we use linear, rigid divalent cations of various lengths to induce condensation. Our results clarify and explain the experimental results for short cations. For longer cations we observe novel condensation behavior owing to the alignment of the cations. We also study the role of the polyelectrolyte surface-charge density, and find a nonmonotonic variation in bundle stability. This nonmonotonicity captures two trends that have been observed in separate experiments.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 138302 |
| Journal | Physical review letters |
| Volume | 99 |
| Issue number | 13 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 26 2007 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physics and Astronomy(all)
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Cite this
Guáqueta, C., & Luijten, E. (2007). Polyelectrolyte condensation induced by linear cations. Physical review letters, 99(13), [138302]. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.99.138302