Theory of Microphase Separation in Concentrated Solutions of Sequence Specific Charged Heteropolymers

The chemical sequences of heteropolymers play a major role in controlling self-assembly and

phase transitions of solutions of heteropolymers. Using the formalism of the effective field

theory, we have developed a general theory to describe microphase separation of sequence-

specific polymers in concentrated solutions by accounting for the specific interactions among

the various kinds of monomers constituting the polymer. Using the developed general theory,

we illustrate the role of electrostatic interactions in the context of intrinsically disordered

proteins and show spinodal curves and morphology diagrams. Our study demonstrates the rich

roles played by sequences of a polymer with a unique mapping between sequences and

microphase separated morphologies.