Determine whether pure ring melts exhibit analogous threading-controlled behavior

Determine whether inter-ring threading in pure ring-polymer melts governs relaxation and miscibility through behavior analogous to that observed in ring/linear polymer blends.

Background

The introduction identifies threading of rings by linear chains in ring/linear blends as a key mechanism governing both relaxation and miscibility. It then distinguishes the less-established case of pure ring melts, noting that an analogous role for threading has not been established and remains speculative. Resolving this issue would clarify whether threading is a generally applicable mechanism for the dynamics and phase behavior of ring-polymer systems or instead depends on the presence of linear chains.