The effect of dextran nanoparticles on the conformation and compaction of single DNA molecules confined in a nanochannel was investigated with fluorescence microscopy. It was observed that the DNA molecules elongate and eventually condense into a compact form with increasing volume fraction of the crowding agent. Under crowded conditions, the channel diameter is effectively reduced, which is in...

By means of numerical simulations, we study the influence of confinement on three-dimensional random close packed (RCP) granular materials subject to gravity. The effects of grain shape (spherical or polyhedral) and polydispersity on this dependence are investigated. In agreement with a simple geometrical model, the solid fraction is found to decrease linearly for increasing confinement no matt...

We study numerically the influence of confinement on the solid fraction and on the structure of three-dimensional random close-packed granular materials subject to gravity. The effects of grain shape (spherical or polyhedral), material polydispersity, and confining wall friction on this dependence are investigated. In agreement with a simple geometrical model, the solid fraction is found to dec...

We study the effect of confinement on glassy liquids using random first order transition theory as a framework. We show that the characteristic length scale above which confinement effects become negligible is related to the point-to-set length scale introduced to measure the spatial extent of amorphous order in supercooled liquids. By confining below this characteristic size, the system become...

When DNA molecules are heated they denature. This occurs locally so that loops of molten single DNA strands form, connected by intact double-stranded DNA pieces. The properties of this ‘melting’ transition have been intensively investigated. Recently there has been a surge of interest in this question, caused by experiments determining the properties of partially bound DNA confined to nanochann...