1. Polymer crystallization

1.1 Crystal structures and morphologies

If its molecular structure is regular and the macromolecular chains are given sufficient time to organize themselves, a polymer can crystallize. As with any material, the crystalline structure of a polymer is described by a mesh, a parallelepiped built on three vectors a, b and c, which characterizes the periodicity of the crystalline edifice in the three directions of space, and by a pattern (or crystallographic motif), which is the material content of the mesh. Polymer crystal systems are generally of low symmetry.

Some polymers...