Abstract
Translocation of a polymer out of a curved surface or membrane is studied via the mean first passage time approach. Membrane curvature gives rise to a constraint on polymer conformation, which effectively drives the polymer to the outside of confinement, where the available volume of the polymer conformational fluctuation is larger. Considering a polymer release out of a spherical vesicle, the polymer translocation time is changed to the scaling behavior for from for where is the polymer contour length, and and are the vesicle radius and polymer radius of gyration, respectively. Also, the polymer capture into a spherical bud is studied, and a possible apparatus for easy capture is suggested.
- Received 16 June 1997
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.57.730
©1998 American Physical Society