English

Cross-linking of micelles by gemini surfactants

Statistical Mechanics 2007-05-23 v2 Soft Condensed Matter

Abstract

We investigate the effects of gemini surfactants, telechelic chain and lipids on the nature of micelles formed by conventional single-tail surfactants in water by carrying out Monte Carlo simulations. In a mixture of gemini and single-tail surfactants in water we find direct evidence of micelles of predominantly single-tail surfactants some of which are dynamically cross-linked by gemini surfactants when the concentrations of the geminis is only a few mole percent and their spacers are {\it hydrophilic}. In contrast, mixtures of lipids and single-tail surfactants in water form only isolated micelles, each consisting of a mixture of both species, without cross-links.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.cond-mat/9912002,
  title  = {Cross-linking of micelles by gemini surfactants},
  author = {Prabal K. Maiti and Kurt Kremer and Oliver Flimm and Debashish Chowdhury and Dietrich Stauffer},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/9912002},
  year   = {2007}
}

Comments

27 pages Latex, 14 postscript figures (5 colour ps figures), minor revision in the text