Threads free falling as a macroscopic replica of random walk phenomena and crystallization process in one dimensional space

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that free-falling threads develop stable conformations that mirror polymer chains and can be modeled as a two-dimensional random walk, revealing a macroscopic analogy to one-dimensional crystallization processes.

Contribution

The paper introduces a macroscopic experiment with falling threads that replicates polymer conformation and crystallization phenomena using a two-dimensional random walk model.

Findings

Thread conformation stabilizes after free fall.

Scaling power matches that of a 2D random walk.

Time evolution resembles 1D crystallization process.

Abstract

We observed the conformation of threads that free released from different altitudes. We also explore the effect of wetting liquid on the conformation developed. When released from an altitude, the thread conformation changes when free falling and reaches the stable conformation (identified by a constant end-to-end distance) after fall over a period of time. We identified that the conformation of the threads replicated the conformation of long polymer chains. Therefore, we applied a two-dimensional random walk model to explain the stable conformation where the thread length is treated as the random walk time (number of polymer segment). A two-dimensional random walk model was used since during free fall, the conformation is assumed to develop on the horizontal plane. Surprisingly, we get the scaling power that is exactly similar to the scale power of two dimensional random (walk). By fitting how end-to-end distance changes with time, we obtain an equation that is exactly similar to modified Avrami equation for process of phase transformation in one-dimension space (D = 1), where the exponential power is n = D+1 = 2. Therefore, we can state that the time evolution of thread conformation process is identical to crystallization process in one dimensional space. This is very interesting finding, showing that the microscopic process (crystallization) can be replicated in macroscopic scale.