Resolving the Mystery of the Chain Friction Mechanism in Polymer Liquids

We propose an explanation for the long-standing puzzles of the microscopic mechanism of chain friction and the failure of time-temperature superposition in polymer melts based on decoupling of macromolecular scale diffusion from local structural relaxation due to spatially heterogeneous dynamics. The proposed physical picture is also relevant for understanding some aspects of dynamic fluctuation and decoupling phenomena in nonpolymeric glass-forming liquids, crystal growth rates, and protein activity in viscous solvents.