Polyelectrolyte-mediated undulation of surfactant bilayers

We studied the effect of the cationic polyelectrolyte poly(diallyldimethyla mmonium chloride) (PDADMAC) on the highly dilute lamellar L-alpha phase for med by the nonionic surfactant triethylene glycol monodecyl ether (C10E3) i n water. Upon addition of PDADMAC, light scattering shows nonlamellar order , indicating the formation of strongly undulated bilayer structures with re peat distances as large as 200 nm. The effect is supposed to originate from attractive bridging forces between polyelectrolyte-covered membranes. [S10 63-651X(98)03512-0].