Abstract: | Equilibrium properties of heterogeneous DNA near the melting temperature Tm are investigated using the grand partition function. The present approach gives exact and analytical solutions. The algebraic expressions enhance a more thorough understanding of the correlation among many observed equilibrium phenomena. The following quantities have been examined: melting temperature Tm, transition width W, partial melting curves θAT and θGC, mean length of a helical segment h, and correlation length γ. |