Conformational changes in macromolecules significantly affect their functions and assembly into high-level structures. Despite advances in theoretical and experimental studies, investigations into the intrinsic conformational variations and dynamic motions of single macromolecules remain challenging. Here, liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy enables the real-time tracking of single-chain polymers. Imaging linear polymers, synthetically dendronized with conjugated aromatic groups, in organic solvent confined within graphene liquid cells, directly exhibits chain-resolved conformational dynamics of individual semiflexible polymers. These experimental and theoretical analyses reveal that the dynamic conformational transitions of the single-chain polymer originate from the degree of intrachain interactions. In situ observations also show that such dynamics of the single-chain polymer are significantly affected by environmental factors, including surfaces and interfaces.

中文翻译：

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溶液中单股聚合物的构象动力学

大分子的构象变化显着影响它们的功能和组装成高级结构。尽管理论和实验研究取得了进展，但对单个大分子的内在构象变化和动态运动的研究仍然具有挑战性。在这里，液相透射电子显微镜能够实时跟踪单链聚合物。在限制在石墨烯液体细胞内的有机溶剂中，用共轭芳香基团合成树枝化的线性聚合物成像，直接展示了单个半柔性聚合物的链分辨构象动力学。这些实验和理论分析表明，单链聚合物的动态构象转变源于链内相互作用的程度。