Polymer Theory: From Specific Properties near a Metal Interface to Chromatin

We present three different fields of research in which analytic theory and computer simulation of polymers play an important role. First the relationship between the specific adsorption of single chemical groups in a polymer onto a metal surface as well as the influence on the global chain conformations are studied. The second example establishes a relation between the chain conformations and the so-called entanglement length that determines the rheology of melts respectively the module of elastomers. The third example shows that based on a relatively simple DNA model ("semi flexible worm-like chain") basic phenomena of the DNA repositioning alongside the chromatin can be understood.