The combination of phase separation and long-ranged, effective, Coulomb interactions results in microphase separation. We predict the sizes and shapes of such microdomains and uniquely their dependence on the macroscopic sample shape which also affects the effective interfacial tension of fluctuations of the lamellar phase. These are applied to equilibrium salt solutions and block copolymers. Nonequilibrium phase separation in the presence of chemical reactions (e.g., cellular condensates) is mapped to the Coulomb theory to which our predictions apply. In some cases, the effective interfacial tension can be ultralow.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.131.258401 | DOI Listing |
Unlabelled: Compartmentalization of the nucleus into heterochromatin and euchromatin is highly conserved across eukaryotes. Constitutive heterochromatin (C-Het) constitutes a liquid-like condensate that packages the repetitive regions of the genome through the enrichment of histone modification H3K9me3 and recruitment of its cognate reader protein Heterochromatin Protein-1 (HP1a). The ability for well-ordered nucleosome arrays and HP1a to independently form biomolecular condensates suggests that the emergent material properties of C-Het compartments may contribute to its functions such as force-buffering, dosage-dependent gene silencing, and selective permeability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPolymers (Basel)
January 2025
School of Engineering, Institute for Materials and Processes, The University of Edinburgh, Sanderson Building, King's Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3FB, UK.
The phase separation of high-density polyethylene (HDPE)-polypropylene (PP) blends was studied using atomic force microscopy in tapping mode to obtain height and phase images. The results are compared with those from scanning electron microscopy imaging and are connected to the thermomechanical properties of the blends, characterised through differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and tensile testing. Pure PP, as well as 10:90 and 20:80 weight ratio HDPE-PP blends, showed a homogeneous morphology, but the 25:75 HDPE-PP blends exhibited a sub-micrometre droplet-matrix structure, and the 50:50 HDPE-PP blends displayed a more complex co-continuous nano/microphase-separated structure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
January 2025
Department of Chemistry, Rutgers University, Camden, NJ, United States of America; Center for Computational and Integrative Biology, Rutgers University, Camden, NJ, United States of America. Electronic address:
Ion transport in solid polymer electrolytes is crucial for applications like energy conversion and storage, as well as carbon dioxide capture. However, most of the materials studied in this area are petroleum-based. Natural materials (biopolymers) have the potential to act as alternatives to petroleum-based products and, when derived with ionic liquid (IL) functionalities, present a sustainable alternative for conductive materials by offering tunable morphological, thermal, and mechanical properties.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Appl Mater Interfaces
January 2025
Universite de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour, E2S UPPA, CNRS, IPREM, 64053, Pau, France.
The photopolymerization-induced microphase separation (photo-PIMS) process involving a reactive polymer block was implemented to fabricate nanostructured quasi-solid polymer electrolytes (QSPEs) for use in lithium metal batteries (LMBs). This innovative one-pot fabrication enhances interfacial properties in LMBs by enabling nanostructuring of QSPE directly onto the electrodes. This process also allows for customization of QSPE structural dimensions by tweaking the architecture and molar mass of poly[(oligo ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate--styrene] (P(OEGMA--S)) macromolecular chain transfer agent.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSoft Matter
January 2025
Institute for Solid State Physics, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan.
Nonequilibrium membrane pattern formation is studied using meshless membrane simulation. We consider that molecules bind to either surface of a bilayer membrane and move to the opposite leaflet by flip-flop. When binding does not modify the membrane properties and the transfer rates among the three states are cyclically symmetric, the membrane exhibits spiral-wave and homogeneous-cycling modes at high and low binding rates, respectively, as in an off-lattice cyclic Potts model.
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