We study conformational and electrophoretic properties of polyelectrolytes (PEs) in tetravalent salt solutions under the action of electric fields by means of molecular dynamics simulations. Chain conformations are found to have a sensitive dependence on the salt concentration C(s). As C(s) is increased, the chains first shrink to a globular structure and subsequently re-expand above a critical concentration C(s)*.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe investigate the behavior of single polyelectrolytes in multivalent salt solutions under the action of electric fields through computer simulations. The chain is unfolded in a strong electric field and aligned parallel to the field direction, and the chain size shows a sigmoidal transition. The unfolding electric field E* depends on the salt concentration and scales as V (-1/2) with V being the ellipsoidal volume occupied by the chain.
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