Polymer Reptation — de Gennes Terminal Time

In a melt of entangled polymers, a chain wriggles snake-like through a confining tube formed by neighbors. The terminal (reptation) time τ_rep ~ N³ and diffusion D ~ N⁻² (de Gennes). Watch the chain escape its tube and renew its configuration.

τ_rep ~ — | MSD ~ — | Chain renewal count = 0