title: Dynamics of the self-assembly of unilamellar vesicles.
abstract: We have studied the transient stages in the formation of unilamellar vesicles with millisecond time resolution. The self-assembly was initiated by rapid mixing of equimolar amounts of anionic and zwitterionic micelles and the transient micellar entities were probed by time-resolved small-angle x-ray scattering. Within the mixing time, original micelles transformed to disklike micelles which evolved further to a critical size and then closed to form monodisperse unilamellar vesicles within a second. Subsequent growth led to an unexpected broadening of the vesicle size distribution.
authors.affiliation: European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, BP 220, F-38043 Grenoble Cedex, France.
authors.forename: T M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Narayanan
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gradzielski
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Panine
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Finet
authors.forename: W I
authors.initials: WI
authors.lastname: Helsby
mesh_terms: D003460:Crystallization / Q000379:methods*; D007700:Kinetics; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000737:chemistry*; D008081:Liposomes / Q000737:chemistry*; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry; D008560:Membrane Fluidity; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D010316:Particle Size; D012996:Solutions
chemical_list: D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D008081:Liposomes; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D012996:Solutions