Characterization of polymers by static light scattering

The static light scattering (SLS) method is introduced with key equations used to extract quantitative information such as weight-average molecular weight, osmotic second virial coefficient, and radius of gyration from the experimental data. The use of Zimm plots to obtain visual cues of the polymer's characteristics is presented. A treatise of the thermodynamic process (modified by structural parameters) sensed by light scattering from a single atom, multiple atoms, fluids, small and large polymers is presented with reliance on a plethora of equations. The design of the SLS instrument as well as a few case studies of SLS applications are summarized to help the user understand the experiment better and to discern compromises in commercial instruments. The opportunity in combining DLS and SLS to obtain a complete picture of polymer characterization and polymer physics closes the loop on these light scattering techniques.