Coil-stretch transition (source code)

= Coil-stretch transition

A <coil-stretch transition> is a sharp change from a coiled to a substantially extended <polymer> conformation under sufficiently strong <extensional flow>. The driving <extensional strain rate> must compete with the chain's relaxation rate, and the available residence <time> matters. A long <polymer relaxation time> lets a weak but sustained flow produce a large effect. The <Hookean dumbbell in planar extension> below isolates this competition; its unbounded growth signals a model limitation, rather than a prediction of infinitely long <molecules>.