Straightening of Thermal Fluctuations in Semiflexible Polymers by Applied Tension

Abstract
We investigate the propagation of a suddenly applied tension along a thermally excited semiflexible polymer using analytical approximations, scaling arguments, and numerical simulation. This problem is inherently nonlinear. We find subdiffusive propagation with a dynamical exponent of 1/4. By generalizing the internal elasticity, we show that tense strings exhibit qualitatively different tension profiles and propagation with an exponent of 1/2.
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