| Abstract: | Polystyrenes having both modified and unmodified endgroup structures were synthesized. These polystyrenes were then subjected to dynamic mechanical testing below their glass transition temperature. The modified structures were shown to influence the β transition of polystyrene. While the mechanism of this secondary transition has been speculated but never unequivocally substantiated in the past, the evidence presented here strongly support the idea that the β transition of polystyrene arises from chain-end motions. |
