IUPAC - crosslink (C01409) (original) (raw)

A small region in a @M03667@ from which at least four @C00946@ emanate, and formed by reactions involving sites or groups on existing macromolecules or by interactions between existing macromolecules.

Notes:

1. The small region may be an atom, a group of atoms, or a number of branch points connected by bonds, groups of atoms, or @O04286@ chains.
2. In the majority of cases, a crosslink is a covalent structure but the term is also used to describe sites of weaker chemical interactions, portions of crystallites, and even physical entanglements.

Source:
PAC, 1996, 68, 2287. (Glossary of basic terms in polymer science (IUPAC Recommendations 1996)) on page 2298 [Terms] [Paper]