Stability of charged membranes

D. Bensimon , F. David , S. Leibler , A. Pumir

The electrostatic contribution to the bending elastic modulus of charged phospholipid bilayers in an ionic solution is computed. It is found to be the same for conducting and non-conducting membranes and is always stabilizing. This stability for free membranes is shown to be a simple consequence of the vanishing of the physical surface tension.

Mots clés: bioelectric phenomena; biomembranes; elastic moduli; lipid bilayers; surface tension

Domaines: Articles anciens

D. Bensimon, F. David, S. Leibler, A. Pumir. Stability of charged membranes. Journal de Physique, 1990, 51 (8), pp.689-695. ⟨10.1051/jphys:01990005108068900⟩. ⟨jpa-00212399⟩