Undulation of lamellar crystals of polymers by surface stresses

The periodical striped contrast is observed in the single crystals of isotactic polystyrene and poly(oxymethylene) by transmission electron microscopy. The contrast is attributed to a periodical tilting of the chain stem around the axis normal to the crystal growth plane; the tilting accompanies the surface undulation, which is observed by atomic force microscopy. The wavelength of the undulation increases with the lamellar thickness. In situ observation of the growing crystal by transmission electron microscopy shows that this undulation is introduced during the growth and not through the cooling process of the crystal. It is proposed that the stress of fold surfaces makes a flat lamellar crystal elastically unstable to cause the buckling deformation during the crystal growth.