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SummaryA procedure has been developed for the direct atomic force microscopic (AFM) examination of the native structure of highdensity polyethylene (HDPE) deformed in an adsorption-active liquid medium (AALM) by the crazing mechanism. The AFM investigation has been carried out in the presence of a liquid medium under conditions preventing deformed films from shrinkage. Deformation of HDPE in AALM has been shown to proceed through the delocalized crazing mechanism and result in the development of a fibrillar-porous structure. The structural parameters of the crazed polymer have been determined. The obtained AFM images demonstrate a nanosized nonuniformity of the deformation and enable one to observe the structural rearrangements that take place in the deformed polymer after removal of the liquid medium and stress relaxation. A structural similarity has been revealed between HDPE deformed in the AALM and hard elastic polymers.

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