Fast Lattice Monte Carlo Simulations of Polymers

The recently proposed fast lattice Monte Carlo (FLMC) simulations (with multiple occupancy of lattice sites (MOLS) and Kronecker $\delta$-function interactions) give much faster/better sampling of configuration space than both off-lattice molecular simulations (with pair-potential calculations) and conventional lattice Monte Carlo simulations (with self- and mutual-avoiding walk and nearest-neighbor interactions) of polymers.\footnote{Q. Wang, \textbf{Soft Matter 5}, 4564 (2009); \textbf{6}, 6206 (2010). } Quantitative coarse-graining of polymeric systems can also be performed using lattice models with MOLS.\footnote{P. Zhang and Q. Wang, \textbf{Soft Matter 9}, 11183 (2013).} Here we use several model systems, including polymer melts, solutions, blends, as well as confined and/or grafted polymers, to demonstrate the great advantages of FLMC simulations in the study of equilibrium properties of polymers.