Polymer Science Graduate Curriculum at UC
(Former Undergraduate Materials Curriculum)

Polymer Physical Properties gives students a basic level of knowledge of the terminology and mathematics involved in the physical understanding of polymers. Most of the topics deal with post-1970 concepts involving the static's of polymeric materials. The course is intended for graduate students who need to gain a cursory understanding of modern approaches to polymer physics. The course will use Strobl's text The Physics of Polymer (2007) chapters 1 to 4, 8, 9 and the appendix. Introductory courses in polymers and thermodynamics are necessary for the course. The course requires a basic understanding of calculus and statistical mathematics such as should be covered in a "traditional" undergraduate science or engineering degree.

This course is designed as a required graduate course but undergraduates and graduate students outside of Chemical and Materials Engineering often take this class. For undergraduates a letter grade boost is given (and A is an 80 or higher for undergraduates) and for non-majors who take this course as an elective some informal grading concessions are usually made on a case-by-case basis.

Slides for Class:
Gaussian Chain Slides 1.ppt, .pdf; Long-Range Interactions Slides 2.ppt, .pdf, Hydrodynamic Radius Rg/Rh.ppt, .pdf, Kabir Rh, Perturbations to the Chain Slides 3.ppt, .pdf, Polymer Dynamics.ppt, .pdf; Rouse Model .ppt, .pdf, CR Ch. 8a; NewRouse.ppt; NewRouse.pdf; Rouse 1953 paper; Debye Heat Capacity 1912 U. Zurich slide 38.pptx;page 38.pdf; Debye 1946; Machine Learning.ppt; Machine Learning.pdf; Nanocomposites.ppt; Nanocomposites.pdf; BeaucageACS2022S.ppt; ACS 2022.pdf; Sukumaran 230403 ; Membranes.ppt; Membranes.pdf
( Review , Ion Exchange Membranes , Supported Liquid Membranes , Resistance Model for Membranes paper, 1983 Science Henis Tripodi ), Ben Yavitt XPCS Talk, Sanat Kumar Nanoplastics Pollution, pdf of Kumar, 2025 Nature paper Nanoplastics, 2025 Soft Matter Paper on Tire microplastics, 2025 membranes Sanat, Materials Modeling/Simulations.pdf, pptx

Books

Class recordings:

2025 Class Recordings

W250115, F250117, F250122 Audio didn't record, sorry, F250124, M250127, W250129, F250131, M250203, W250205, F250207, M250210, W250212, F250214, M250217, W250219, F250221, M250224, W250226, F250228, M250303, W250305, F250307, M250310, W250312, F250314, F250324, F250326 Missing , F250328, 250331, 250402, 250404, AI Summary 250404, 250407, 250409, 250411 Sanat Kumar, 250411 P&G Soft Matter Symposium, 250414, 250416, 250418, 250421, 250423, 250425

Old Class Videos

Homework 1, Wang Threaded Ring/Linear Blends, Wang Supplementary, Figure 6d, Figure 6d digitized and fitArrigi, Higgins 2020 Cyclics Study, Circular RNA Review Article April 2024 Nature, Wiki for Hagita's Gaussian Linking Integral, More details than you want on Gaussian Linking Number, molecular machine based on threaded ring polymer

Homework 2, Wang Winey PNC Diffusion, Schweizer A, Schweizer B

Homework 3, Colby, Gomez 2022, Evearers Plot 2008 Reference 12, Reference 29 Pedersen Flexible Cylinder Model, Liquid Crystal, LCPs, Kent State, deGennes soft matter speach, question e plot, PNDI 2OD N2, PmmpP1076k, Question c ChatGPT answer

Homework 4, Kwok Macro 2022, Figure 2B, Figure 2B Dititized,Kwok Macro Supplemental, Park Nature 2022, Strain Alignment Review 2024, Wang MD LAMMPS 2024, Dadmun 2017, Cao 2024, Conjugated polymers 2022, Stanley 2013 SANS Study, Circularly Polarized Light

Homework 5, Li 2025, Li Supplemental,FiberApp Software Paper, Derivation of OSF Page 1072 Dobrynin, Rubinstein 2006, Chinese Chapter on Polyelectrolytes, 2025 Review SoftMatter, Sheffield Thesis on Polyelectrolytes,Wiki Algenic Acid,Egg Box Structure of Ca+2 an alginate (3500 citations),Wiki Monosacharides, Wiki Zeta Potential, Wiki laser doppler velosimetry, wiki electrophoresis, APTES surface treatment for mica, Wang MW determination 2023, Comments

Homework 6, Xu Paper, Xu Supplemental, Fopple von Karman number, Jiang 2020 Overview, Li 2020 graphene oxide, 2021 DPD Review

Homework 7, Chaboche, Ha, Kang, Random Closest Packed, Grosberg P. 167 (add f to end)

Homework 8, Takahashi, Takahashi Suplemental, Living Free Radical Polymerization Wiki, Chain Transfer Agents CTA, 2-Cyano-2-propyl benzodithioate, Ayres RAFT Polymerization 2023, Reference 29, Berry Plot Reference, Roe P. 170 moments for Rg

Homework 9, Waszkiewicz, Waszkiewicz Suplemental, Protein Data Bank, UniProtKB, 2W0O Horse spleen apoferritin

Homework 10, Kamani, Kamani Suplemental, Ref. 72, Kamani KDR Model Paper, Tsapatsaris, Mean Free Path of a Gas Atom, Ernst, 2D NMR and correlation spectroscopy, Aerosil 972 micrograph

Homework 11, Shah, Shah Supplemental, Dereka 2022, Niebuur, Dynamics Slides 53-73, Thermo Slides 33-77, QENS on transport membranes Nature, Supplemental Nature Membranes, PEDOT/PSS, Avrami Equation, crown ether, Gromacs

Homework 12, Cai 2025, Ref 50 Rubenstein, Ref 51 Cai 2022, Kang 2024, Aggrecan, Horkay 2023

Homework 13,Brackley 2021

Homework 14
Question 1
Sanat Kumar 2025, Ref 10 Sanders, Ref 25 Jhalaria, Ref 32 Midya, Resistance Model, Stick Slip Transport Model, Review Polymer Membranes, 1983 Gas Separation Membranes, Membrane Technology, Nanoparticle Membrane Technology
Question 2
Degaki, Degaki Suplemental, Reference 22 Weitz, Reference 24, Reference 6 of Reference 24, Macromolecules same authors 2025, wiki Laplace transform

Textbook:

1. "The Physics of Polymers, 2'nd Edition, Concepts for Understanding Their Structure and Behavior" G. Strobl, Springer Press 1997 (3'rd Ed. 2007).
2. "Introduction to Polymer Physics" M. Doi, Clarendon Press 1996. Available at Amazon.com for $25 search Masao Doi
3. Class Notes Posted on the Web at:
   http://www.eng.uc.edu/~gbeaucag/BeaucageResearchGroup.html
4. "Scaling concepts in polymer physics" P. G. de Gennes 1979.
5. "The theory of polymer dynamics" Oxford University Press, 1986.
6. "Principles of polymer chemistry." P. J. Flory, 1953.
7. "Polymer Chemistry, The Basic Concepts", Paul C. Hiemenz, Marcel Dekker 1984/2005.
8. Berlin html Notes Very Similar to This Course
   
9. A Math review page that may be useful for some.
10. Book on Neutron Scattering and good sections on polymers by Boualem Hammouda of NIST (UC Link)

---

Grades

 

Only whole grades will be given: A = 90.0 to 100; B = 80.0 to 89.9; C = 70.0 to 79.9; D = 60.0 to 69.9 , undergraduates will be give a 10 point boost

Final Exam:  Senior undergraduates are exempt from finals in thier last semester. The final is an individual take home composed of two homework problem sets of five questions each. It is valued at 5 homeworks.  

 

---

Books:

Book by Teraoka Brooklyn Polytechnic
Debye Controversy
Book by Strobl (available at UC only)
Strobl
Rubinstein and Colby
Doi
Hiemenz 1984
Hiemenz 1997
Hiemenz Colloids 2007
Giant Molecules Grosberg
Tanaka Polymer Physics and Gels
Polyethylene
Polypropylene
Vanderbilt Rubber Handbook
Degennes
">Polymers in Solution RH pp. 415
Comprehensive Polymer Science V1; V2; V3; V4; V5; V6; V7; V8; V9; V10
Einstein 1905 Brownian Motion
Soft and Fragile Matter, Cates and Evans
Flory I; Flory Biography until Cornell
Bower Polymer Crystals and Engineering Aspects Leeds 2001
Stein and Powers
Gedde
Polymer Colloids (Pickering Emulsions) 2020
Related Book pdf
Polymer Solutions Textbook 2002 BPI
Hill Statistical Thermodynamics 1960
Guggenheim Mixtures
Theory of Simple Liquids with Applications to Soft Matter Hansen & McDonald 2013
Theory of Simple Liquids 2006
Friedricksen Simulation Text book
Landau and Binder Monte Carlo Methods
Particle Methods for Multiscale Physics
Simulation Methods for Polymers
Frenkel and Smit Materials Simulations
Computational Methods in Physics (Extensive Webpage)
Block Copolymers Hamley
Atkins Physical Chemistry
Dimarzio Book Chapter on Biopolymers
The Structure and Rheology of Complex Fluids, R. Larson
Viscoelastic Properties of Polymers, J. D. Ferry
Mechanical Properties of Solid Polymers, I. M. Ward
Dynamics of Polymer Liquids (Vol. 1) Bird, Armstrong, Hassager
Dynamics of Polymer Liquids (Vol. 2) Bird, Armstrong, Hassager
The Physics of Rubber Elasticity, Treloar
Mesoscopic Theory of Polymer Dynamics, Pokrovskii
Lipatov Physical Chemistry of Polymers
Lipatov Polymer/Fillers
Dynamic Light Scattering
Colloidal Rheology
Carbon Black
Brinker and Scherrer Sol gel science
Smoke Dust and Haze Friedlander
Membranes and Surfaces
Polymer Processing
Macosko Rheology
Paul Russo Lab
Jamieson and Simha
Fried
Tadmor Gogos
Winter and Chambon
Mewis and Wagner
Percolation Theory Intro
Polymer Microscopy
Membrane Technology
Bee Quasielastic Neutron Scattering
Polymer Processing Collais Baird
Dealy, Read, Larson

=>To Beaucage