A collection of objects are called monodisperse, or monosized, if they have the same size and shape when discussing particles, and the same mass when discussing polymers. A sample of objects that have an inconsistent size, shape and mass distribution are called polydisperse

Polydisperse

A collection of objects is called polydisperse or polysized if they have a broad range of size, shape and mass characteristics. A sample of objects that have a uniform size, shape and mass distribution are called monodisperse. In practice, polydisperse collections are common because it is...

.

Monodisperse collections can be easily created through the use of template-based synthesis, a common method of synthesis in nanotechnology

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...

. Monodisperse polymers are typically created through natural processes.

Polymers

The term is used for polymer

Polymer

A polymer is a large molecule composed of repeating structural units. These subunits are typically connected by covalent chemical bonds...

 chains made by anionic polymerization, a method which results in chains that are similar in length. The catalyst used to initiate chains is anionic in nature. The technique is also known as living polymerization

Living polymerization

In polymer chemistry, living polymerization is a form of addition polymerization where the ability of a growing polymer chain to terminate has been removed. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways. Chain termination and chain transfer reactions are absent and the rate of chain initiation is...

. It is used commercially for the production of block copolymers.