Solid state deuterium NMR studies of polymer chain dynamics.

This chapter for "Annual Review of Materials Science" provides a critical summary of solid state deuterium NMR studies on synthetic polymers. Three common features pertain to all of these studies. Firstly, all synthetic polymers demonstrate a large degree of motional heterogeneity on a molecular scale. Secondly, it is clear that crystalline regions in a semicrystalline polymer introduce constraints which are not readily relaxed as a function of temperature. Finally, substantial molecular motions in the 10(-3) to 10(-9)s regime occur in the amprphous and glassy regions of essentially all polymers well below the glass transition temperature.