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Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics Commons™
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Full-Text Articles in Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
Vibrated Squares As Equilibrium And Active Matter, Lee Askew Walsh
Vibrated Squares As Equilibrium And Active Matter, Lee Askew Walsh
Doctoral Dissertations
We study the effects of particle shape and self-propulsion on the collective behaviors of a two-dimensional granular fluid, using an experimental system of hard square grains. We energize the system by vibration, which, depending on particle shape, induces either isotropic diffusion or persistent self-propulsion in the particles. We use specially designed grains as a model system to study (i) the equilibrium packing of hard squares in two dimensions, (ii) the dynamics of athermal self-propelled particles, and (iii) the melting kinetics of an unconfined granular crystallite. The first study concerns the phase diagram of a two-dimensional fluid of hard squares, which …
X-Ray Characterization Of Mesophases And Phase Transitions Of Dna Analogues In Solutions, Mustafa Selcuk Yasar
X-Ray Characterization Of Mesophases And Phase Transitions Of Dna Analogues In Solutions, Mustafa Selcuk Yasar
Doctoral Dissertations
We think of DNA as double-stranded helices (duplex), but the polymer exists in many conformations. Several triplex and quadruplex DNA structures can be formed in laboratory settings and exist in nature. This thesis first provides a brief description of the nature of the order in arrays of duplex DNA under biologically relevant molecular crowding conditions. Then we compare the duplex DNA mesophases with the corresponding liquid crystalline phase behavior of the triplex and quadruplex DNA analogues. In particular, we focus on G-quadruplexes. Observed in the folds of guanine-rich oligonucleotides, G-quadruplex structures are based on G-quartets formed by hydrogen bonding and …