%0 Journal Article %A Barbi, Maria%A %A Lepri, Stefano%A %A Peyrard, Michel%A %A Theodorakopoulos, Nikos %D 2003 %T Thermal denaturation of a helicoidal DNA model %J Physical Review E %V 68 %@ 1063-651X %R 10.1103/physreve.68.061909 %I American Physical Society %P 061909-1-061909–14 %N 6 %U https://hdl.handle.net/10442/7548 %X We study the static and dynamical properties of DNA in the vicinity of its melting transition, i.e. the separation of the two strands upon heating. The investigation is based on a simple mechanical model which includes the helicoidal geometry of the molecule and allows an exact numerical evaluation of its thermodynamical properties. Dynamical simulations of long-enough molecular segments allow the study of the structure factors and of the properties of the denaturated regions. Simulations of finite chains display the hallmarks of a first order transition for sufficiently long-ranged stacking forces although a study of the model’s ``universality class’’ strongly suggests the presence of an ``underlying’’ continuous transition. %> Αποθετήριο Ήλιος / ΕΙΕ