Polymer Chemistry: Morphology

Polymer morphology is the overall form of polymer structure, including crystallinity, branching, molecular weight, cross-linking, and so on. Small molecules usually have crystalline solids, which are highly-ordered 3-dimensional arrays of the molecules. Solid polymers can be crystalline or amorphous (disordered arrangements of randomly coiled and entangled chains). Thermoplastics usually are semicrystalline - a combination of crystalline and amorphous regions. The properties of thermoplastics are strongly influenced by their morphology.