Issue |
Europhys. Lett.
Volume 59, Number 6, September II 2002
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 916 - 922 | |
Section | Interdisciplinary physics and relates areas of science and technology | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1209/epl/i2002-00130-3 | |
Published online | 01 September 2002 |
Pattern formation during adhesion of multicomponent membranes
1
Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry,
University of California San Francisco, CA 94143-1204, USA
2
Max-Planck-Institut für Kolloid- und
Grenzflächenforschung 14424 Potsdam, Germany
3
Department of Chemistry, University of California -
Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Received:
14
March
2002
Accepted:
26
June
2002
The adhesion dynamics of multicomponent membranes containing specific receptors (stickers) and repulsive macromolecules (repellers) is studied theoretically. We find different dynamic regimes with clearly distinct patterns of stickers and repellers at intermediate times. The pattern formation is shown to depend critically on the strength of the repeller barrier which opposes sticker binding. For strong barriers composed of long repellers, the nucleation time for sticker binding is large compared to typical diffusion times, and the stickers bind by condensation around a single nucleus. For weaker repeller barriers, many nuclei are formed initially. Due to the diffusion of stickers into the adhesion area, nuclei at the rim of this area subsequently grow faster, which results in circular sticker patterns. At sufficiently high sticker concentrations, the pattern evolution is similar to recent observations during T cell adhesion.
PACS: 87.16.Dg – Membranes, bilayers, and vesicles / 64.75.+g – Solubility, segregation, and mixing; phase separation / 89.75.Kd – Patterns
© EDP Sciences, 2002
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