Observation of instability of faceted crystals in lipid monolayers

Abstract The morphological instabilities of two-dimensional hexagonal crystals in lipid monolayers are studied. Fluorescence microscopy indicates that beyond a critical size the faceted crystal develops into dendrites with unusual tip growth behavior, which is not consistent with the current theory of dendritic growth. The morphological transitions in relation to the driving force for two-dimensional crystal growth are also studied.

Bilayer Formation of Streptavidin Bridged by Bis(biotinyl) Peptide at the Air/Water Interface

Dynamic behaviors of fractal-like domains in monolayers

In this paper we report our recent investigations on the morphological evolution of fractal-like domains of the liquid-condensed (LC) phase in lipid monolayers. It is demonstrated that the dimension of the LC domains increases upon continuous illumination of microscope light. The experimental data indicate that the increasing rate of fractal dimension of the LC domains depends on the concentration of fluorescence probes. By analyzing the domain growth process we find that the self-similarity of the pattern disappears gradually during its growth. The possible mechanism behind the observed phenomena is discussed.

Illumination-related pattern formations in lipid monolayers

We report on the phenomenon that in the two phase coexistence region (LC-LE) of a lipid monolayer film the fractal-like solid domains may grow simply by continuous illumination of a fluorescence microscope. The mechanism of this 2D domain growth is discussed. This phenomenon gives insight into the two-dimensional ramified crystallization in monolayers.

Monolayers of Bolaform Amphiphiles: Influence of Alkyl Chain Length and Counterions

We have prepared self-assembled monolayers of novel cationic bolaform amphiphiles on negatively charged substrates. Most of these amphiphiles form smooth, defect-free monolayers which can be used to reverse the substrate surface charge and thus allow subsequent adsorption of anionic molecules and construction of multilayers. Atomic force microscopy, surface force measurement, and surface plasmon spectroscopy were combined to probe the molecular orientation and ordering, mechanical properties, and surface electrical properties of the monolayers. In addition, the amphiphile aggregation behavior at an air-water interface was studied by surface tension measurement, and lyotropic phase behavior …

Inkorporation von Membranproteinen in festkörperunterstützte planare Lipidfilme