Effect of amorphous sequences on the longitudinal acoustic modes in partially crystalline polymers. I. Transfer matrix method

A novel theoretical scheme is developed which enables the determination of the LAM-like vibrations of polymer chains made up of crystalline and amorphous parts as they occur in partially crystalline structures. The boundary conditions effective at the junction points are formulated in terms of the compliances of the associated amorphous sequences. These compliances can be derived from their eigenfrequencies and eigenvectors in a disconnected state. The treatment uses a matrix formalism which can be extended to include bending and torsional motions in a general state of vibration of the crystalline stem. A first numerical example demonstrates that the LA mode of a crystalline stem can be strongly perturbed by the coupling to the adjacent amorphous sequences. Interpretation of frequencies and line shapes of observed LA modes should always include these coupling effects; their neglect can lead to considerable errors.