Abstract
We present a continuum theory for the condensation of large, soluble, single-stranded RNA molecules on attractive substrates. In the mean-field approximation, the theory reduces to the Cahn–de Gennes description of wetting fluids and offers a natural explanation for the development of a sharply defined density profile following a prewetting surface phase transition. This mapping onto the wetting problem can break down because of a capillary instability where the adsorbed film decomposes into a collection of segregated, nonoverlapping molecules.
- Received 17 May 2006
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.97.108102
©2006 American Physical Society