We present a simple scaling theory of the dynamics of a ring polymer in a gel. In the absence of excluded volume interactions, we predict that the translational diffusion coefficient $D$ varies with the molecular weight $M$ as $D\sim M^{-2\mathrm{}}$ and the longest relaxation time $T$ scales as $T\sim M^{\frac{5}{2}}$. The results of numerical simulations support these findings.

• Received 19 April 1994

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.73.1263