Hybrid biomembrane substructure determination by contrast-variation analysis

Sandwiched composites that consist of a fluid lipid bilayer associated with a suitable support can serve as a model membrane for biophysical studies. As a precondition of their formation, both support and membrane have to fit each other and the composite has to exhibit a sufficient stability if exposed to an aqueous volume. Neutron reflectometry is applied to determine the thickness of the thin structures as they form. The combination of deuterated and protonated components allows us to highlight single layers. Thus the structural details of the system as it is subsequently built up are displayed step by step at high resolution.