Relation between the helical twist and S-shaped cross section of the lamellar crystals of polyethylene

The relation between the handedness of helical twist and the S-shaped cross section of the lamellar crystals is discussed for linear polyethylene. The lamellar crystals are found to rotate so that the convex surfaces of “S” push aside the melt when they advance in the growth direction. This relation, which has not been examined sufficiently so far, is found to be opposite from what was proposed earlier. A model to explain these observations is presented. This paper also demonstrates that the twist handedness can be clarified based on the stack order of crystalline lamellae without any treatment such as etching or extraction to isolate the lamellar crystals.