Entropic competition between knots and slip-links

Zandi, Roya; Kantor, Yacov; Kardar, Mehran

Entropic competition between knots and slip-links

Authors

Zandi, Roya

Kantor, Yacov

Kardar, Mehran

Description

Using canonical Monte Carlo simulations, we introduce a new numerical procedure for comparing the entropic exponents of polymers with different constraints and/or topologies. Setting up competitions between polymer segments which can exchange monomers according to their free energies, we obtain the universal exponents of partition functions, independently of any knowledge of the non-universal part. The method is successfully tested for closed polymer loops decorated with sliding rings. We also investigate the entropic exponents of loops with a fixed knot type, in which case we are limited by strong finite--size effects.
8 pages, 12 figures