MEASUREMENT OF LINE TENSION FROM CELL COALESCENCE EVENTS IN A LANGMUIR FILM

Epifluorescence microscopy was used to examine Langmuir films of an al koxy-substituted (phenylene acetylene-pyridine acetylene) polymer. The polymer was observed to form microscopic two-dimensional emulsion-lik e cellular network morphologies after treatment by a simple processing procedure. Cell coalescence was found to be an important process in t he evolution of the cellular network. As observed under the microscope , cell coalescence is similar to the bursting of a soap bubble. An est imate of the line tension was made using an analogue of an equation de veloped by Culick and others to describe the rim velocity of a burstin g soap bubble.