Effect of the Ratio l_K/p on Glassy-Polymeric Shear Deformation Mechanisms

Using molecular dynamics simulations, we study how chain stiffness affects how glassy polymers deform under applied shear. Loosely entangled systems composed of flexible chains exhibit strong shear banding and subsequent strain softening whereas tightly entangled systems composed of semiflexible chains exhibit neither of these. For all systems, inflection points in stress–strain curves correspond to the onset of chain scission, but nonlinear...