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Related Concept Videos

Fluid Mosaic Model01:19

Fluid Mosaic Model

Scientists identified the plasma membrane in the 1890s and its principal chemical components (lipids and proteins) by 1915. The model for plasma membrane structure, proposed in 1935 by Hugh Davson and James Danielli, was the first model to be widely accepted in the scientific community. The model was based on the plasma membrane's "railroad track" appearance in early electron micrographs. Davson and Danielli theorized that the plasma membrane's structure resembled a sandwich with the analogy of...
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Membrane fluidity is explained by the fluid mosaic model of the cell membrane, which describes the plasma membrane structure as a mosaic of components—including phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and carbohydrates—that gives the membrane a fluid character.
Mosaic nature of the membrane
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Updated: Jun 8, 2026

Proof-of-Concept for Gas-Entrapping Membranes Derived from Water-Loving SiO2/Si/SiO2 Wafers for Green Desalination
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Proof-of-Concept for Gas-Entrapping Membranes Derived from Water-Loving SiO2/Si/SiO2 Wafers for Green Desalination

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Smectic membranes in aqueous environment.

Yasutaka Iwashita1, Stephan Herminghaus, Ralf Seemann

  • 1Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, 37073 Göttingen, Germany.

Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|September 28, 2010
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Freely suspended smectic liquid crystal films were created in water using surfactants. Researchers studied film stability and thinning, finding transitions above the bulk smectic-A to isotropic phase transition temperature.

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Soft Matter Physics
  • Physical Chemistry

Background:

  • Freely suspended liquid crystal films are crucial for fundamental research and applications.
  • Studying these films in aqueous environments presents unique challenges and opportunities.
  • Smectic liquid crystals exhibit complex phase behaviors relevant to material properties.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the preparation and properties of thermotropic smectic liquid crystal films in an aqueous environment.
  • To analyze the stability and thinning transitions of these films.
  • To explore the formation and rupture kinetics of smectic membranes in microfluidic systems.

Main Methods:

  • Preparation of macroscopic freely suspended smectic liquid crystal films (up to 7.4 × 15 mm2) in water.
  • Utilizing surfactants for strong homeotropic anchoring at liquid crystal/water interfaces.
  • Characterization via optical microscopy and ellipsometry; investigation of microfluidic devices.

Main Results:

  • Successfully prepared stable, macroscopic freely suspended smectic liquid crystal films in water.
  • Observed film thinning transitions occurring at temperatures above the bulk smectic-A to isotropic transition.
  • Investigated the kinetics of thin smectic membrane formation and rupture in microfluidic setups.

Conclusions:

  • Smectic liquid crystal films can be effectively prepared and studied in aqueous environments.
  • The study provides insights into the stability and phase transitions of these films.
  • Findings suggest potential applications in microfluidics and expand the scope of freely suspended smectic film research.