Chains in the presence of an interacting surface and different boundary conditions

Abstract

The end‐to‐end distribution function of a linear chain interacting with a penetrable surface with the potential uδ(z) is demonstrated to recover the case of the distribution in the presence of an impenetrable surface with different boundary conditions. The two different boundary conditions of zero probability density and of zero of the gradient of the probability density at the surface correspond to different values of u and the penetrable distribution function can thus be used to describe chains with various degrees of interactions both in the presence of penetrable or impenetrable surfaces. Density profiles of the monomeric units of the chains localized at one or both ends are described, furnishing an insight to the distortion which the interactingsurface brings on the shape of a coil. The study includes an extension to the cases of ring and star macromolecules.