Fields and forces acting on a planar membrane with a conducting channel

Phys Rev E Stat Nonlin Soft Matter Phys. 2004 Apr;69(4 Pt 1):041901. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.69.041901. Epub 2004 Apr 14.

Abstract

Modeling electric fields and forces around a channel in a planar membrane is still an open problem. Until now, most of the existing theories have oversimplified the electric field distribution by placing the electrode directly at the entry of the channel. However, in any relevant experimental setup the electrodes are placed far away in the electrolyte solution. We demonstrate that long-range deformation of the electric field distribution appears around the membrane, spanning on distances of the order of the distance between the membrane and the electrode. The forces acting due to this distribution are in most of the cases negligible. They can be important for channels with radii of the order of the thickness of the layer of structured water at the oil-water interface.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Cell Membrane / physiology*
  • Computer Simulation
  • Electric Conductivity
  • Electrodes*
  • Electromagnetic Fields
  • Ion Channels / physiology*
  • Lipid Bilayers / metabolism*
  • Membrane Potentials / physiology*
  • Models, Biological*
  • Stress, Mechanical

Substances

  • Ion Channels
  • Lipid Bilayers