FREEZE-FRACTURE ELECTRON-MICROSCOPY OF DILUTE LAMELLAR AND ANOMALOUS ISOTROPIC (L3) PHASES

We show images of dilute lamellar (Lα) and anomalous isotropic (L3) phases obtained by freeze fracture electron microscopy. The images of the Lα phase show stacks of bilayers. In some parts, undulations of the bilayers may be seen. The images from the L3 phase show an apparently bicontinuous network of two aqueous subvolumes separated by a random bilayer network. Saddle point structures with a mean curvature close to zero and a negative Gaussian curvature are observed. The bilayers are separated by several hundred angstroms, and the repeat distances seen on the images agree with those measured previously by SANS. Furthermore, the transition from Lα to L3 through the intermediate state of passage formation seems to be captured. © 1990 American Chemical Society.