Brillouin light-scattering from polymer gels

Abstract

The experimental results of the Brillouin shift and width for poly(vinyl alcohol) and poly(vinyl chloride) gels as a function of gel network volume fraction have been analysed using the theory of Marqusee and Deutch for Brillouin light-scattering from polymer gels, incorporated with a new plausible assumption relating the speed of sound in the gel network with its volume fraction. It has been found that the essential features of the behaviour of the Brillouin shift and width are well described by the theory over most of the range of the volume fraction.