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High‐polymer physics

NOV 01, 1984
An account of this increasingly important science on the 40th anniversary of its APS division finds new discoveries stimulating activity in a vast array of topics.
Elio Passaglia
Martin Broadhurst
Edmund DiMarzio
Isaac Sanchez

The Division of High Polymer Physics of the American Physical Society was founded in 1944, spurred in large measure by the development of synthetic rubber during the Second World War. With the enormous postwar growth of the synthetic polymer industry, the field of polymer physics burgeoned—and along with it, the Division of High Polymer Physics. At the time of the March 1984 APS meeting, the division was an active, thriving community of 1001 members with a variety of scientific interests and activities. In this article, we will attempt to give the flavor of their work. We hope our account is sufficiently specific to be useful and interesting to polymer scientists, yet general enough to be intelligible and interesting to the general reader.

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References

  1. 1. R. B. Bird, C. F. Curtiss, “Facinating polymeric liquids,” PHYSICS TODAY, January 1984, p. 36.

  2. 2. P.‐G. de Gennes, “Entangled polymers,” PHYSICS TODAY, June 1983, p. 33.

  3. 3. T. C. Lubensky, P. A. Pincus, “Superpolymers, ultraweak solids and aggregates,” PHYSICS TODAY, October 1984, p. 44.

  4. 4. E. T. Samulski, “Polymeric liquid crystals,” PHYSICS TODAY, May 1982, p. 40.

  5. 5. P. J. Flory, Principles of Polymer Chemistry, Cornell U.P., Ithaca, New York (1971).

  6. 6. J. D. Ferry, Viscoelastic Properties of Polymers, third edition, Wiley, New York (1980).

  7. 7. P.‐G. de Gennes, Scaling Concepts in Polymer Physics, Cornell U.P., Ithaca, New York (1979).

  8. 8. F. Khoury, E. Passaglia, “The Morphology of Crystalline Synthetic High Polymers,” in Treatise on Solid State Chemistry, H. B. Hannay, ed., Plenum, New York (1976), chapter 6.

  9. 9. J. D. Hoffman, G. T. Davis, J. I. Lauritzen, Jr., “The Rate of Crystallization of Linear Polymers with Chain Folding,” in Treatise on Solid State Chemistry, H. B. Hannay, ed., Plenum, New York (1976), chapter 7.

  10. 10. “New Conducting Polymers Join Polyacetylene,” PHYSICS TODAY, September 1979, p. 19.

  11. 11. A. J. Epstein, J. S. Miller, “Linear Chain Conductors,” Sci. Amer., October 1979, p. 52.

  12. 12. A. J. Lovenger, “Ferroelectric Polymers,” Science 20, 1115 (1983).https://doi.org/SCIEAS

  13. 13. J. Mort, G. Pfister, “Photoelectric Properties of Disordered Organic Solids: Molecularly Doped Polymers,” Polym.‐Plast. Technical Eng. 12, 89 (1979).https://doi.org/PPTEC7

  14. 14. J. M. O’Reilly, M. Goldstein, eds., Structure and Mobility in Molecular and Atomic Glasses, N.Y. Acad. Sci., New York (1981).

  15. 15. T. Tanaka, “Gels,” Sci. Amer., January 1981, p. 124.

  16. 16. C. Williams, F. Brochard, H. L. Frisch, “Polymer Collapse,” Ann. Rev. Phys. Chem. 32, 433 (1981).https://doi.org/ARPLAP

  17. 17. I. C. Sanchez, “Bulk and Interface Thermodynamics of Polymer Alloys,” Ann. Rev. Mat. Sci. 13, 387 (1983).https://doi.org/ARMSCX

  18. 18. M. Tirrell, “Polymer Self‐Diffusion in Entangled Systems,” Rubber Chem. And Technol. 57, July–August 1984.https://doi.org/RCTEA4

More about the authors

Elio Passaglia, Polymers Division of the National Bureau of Standards.

Martin Broadhurst, Polymers Division of the National Bureau of Standards.

Edmund DiMarzio, Polymers Division of the National Bureau of Standards.

Isaac Sanchez, Polymers Division of the National Bureau of Standards.

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This Content Appeared In
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Volume 37, Number 11

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