Abstract
The first passage time τ for two sites on a supercoiled DNA molecule is analyzed as a function of both overall molecule length N and the length between the two sites n, using a previously introduced theory [J.F. Marko, Physica A 244 (1997) 263]. This time is shown to have the scaling form τ(n,N)∝n2f(n/N) where f(x) smoothly runs from 5.6 to 1 as x runs from 0 to 0.5. Therefore τ(n,N) has a strong dependence on intersite distance n and a much weaker dependence on molecular length N.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 289-292 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications |
| Volume | 296 |
| Issue number | 1-2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 2001 |
Funding
Helpful discussions with S.E. Halford, D. Sherratt, E.L. Zecheidrich, E.D. Siggia and A.V. Vologodskii are acknowledged. This research was supported by the NSF through Grant DMR-9734178, the Research Corporation, the Petroleum Research Fund of the American Chemical Society, the Whitaker Foundation, and the University of Illinois Foundation.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Statistics and Probability
- Condensed Matter Physics