Abstract
MEMBRANES composed of bilayers of amphiphiles such as phospholipids generally exhibit two-dimensional liquid-like structure within the layers. When the constituent molecules of such a membrane are permanently cross-linked to each other, the membrane becomes less flexible, forming a two-dimensional solid. Solid membranes are expected to exhibit very different behaviour from their liquid counterparts1–3, including transitions between a two-dimensional flat phase, a crumpled phase of fractal dimension 2.5 and a compact, three-dimensional phase. Experimental evidence for the crumpled phase has, however, been lacking. As this phase was not observed in computer simulations4–6, it has been suggested that it may always be absent for self-avoiding (and therefore all real) membranes4–6. To the contrary, we report here the experimental observation of the crumpled conformation in an aqueous suspension of graphite oxide membranes. Static light scattering measurements indicate the presence of membrane conformations with a fractal dimension of 2.54 ±0.05. As the intra-membrane affinity is enhanced by changing the composition of the solvent, the membranes collapse to a compact configuration.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Lipowsky, R. Nature 349, 475–481 (1991).
Statistical Mechanics of Membranes and Surfaces (eds Nelson, D. R., Piran, T. & Weinberg, S.) (World Scientific, Singapore, 1989).
Kantor, Y., Kardar, M. & Nelson, D. R. Phys. Rev. Lett. 57, 791–794 (1986); Phys. Rev. A35, 3056–3071 (1987).
Plischke, M. & Boal, D. H. Phys. Rev. A38, 4943–4945 (1988).
Abraham, F. F., Rudge, W. E. & Plischke, M. Phys. Rev. Lett. 62, 1757–1759 (1989).
Ho, J.-S. & Baumgartner, A. Phys. Rev. Lett. 63, 1324 (1989).
Kantor, Y. & Nelson, D. R. Phys. Rev. Lett. 58, 2774–2777 (1987).
Paczuski, M., Kardar, M. & Nelson, D. R. Phys. Rev. Lett. 60, 2638–2640 (1988).
Mandelbrot, B. The Fractal Geometry of Nature (Freeman, San Francisco, 1982).
Abraham, F. F. & Kardar, M. Science 252, 419–422 (1991).
Abraham, F. F. & Nelson, D. R. J. Phys. (France) 51, 2653–2672 (1990).
Brodie, B. Phil. Trans. 149, 249–251 (1859)
Hummers, W. S. & Offeman, R. E. J. Am. chem. Soc. 80, 1339 (1958).
Boehm, H. P., Glauss, A., Fischer, G. & Hofmann, U. Z. Naturforsch. 17, 150–153 (1962).
Hwa, T., Kokufuta, E. & Tanaka, T. Phys. Rev. A44, R2235–2237 (1991).
Chianelli, R. R., Prestride, E. B., Pecoraro, T. A. & DeNeufville, J. P. Science 203, 1105–1107 (1979).
Mutz, M., Bensimon, D. & Brienne, M. J. Phys. Rev. Lett. 67, 923–926 (1991).
Martin, J. E. & Hurd, A. J. J. appl. Cryst. 20, 61–78 (1987).
Gomes, M. A. F., & Vasconcelos, G. L. Phys. Rev. Lett. 60, 237 (1988).
Kantor, Y., Kardar, M. & Nelson, D. R. Phys. Rev. Lett. 60, 238 (1988).
Nelson, D. R. & Radzihovsky, L. Europhys. Lett. 16, 79–84 (1991).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wen, X., Garland, C., Hwa, T. et al. Crumpled and collapsed conformation in graphite oxide membranes. Nature 355, 426–428 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1038/355426a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/355426a0
- Springer Nature Limited
This article is cited by
-
A Review on Graphene Oxide Two-dimensional Macromolecules: from Single Molecules to Macro-assembly
Chinese Journal of Polymer Science (2021)
-
Elasto-plasticity in wrinkled polymerized lipid membranes
Scientific Reports (2014)
-
A dynamic light scattering study of photochemically reduced colloidal graphene oxide
Colloid and Polymer Science (2014)
-
Particle scattering function of a two-dimensional flexible macromolecule
Polymer Journal (2013)
-
A broader view of membranes
Nature (2001)