Kinetics of Vesicle Growth

TL;DR

This paper presents a theoretical model for vesicle growth in liquids, deriving a size distribution function that evolves over time and identifying key growth dynamics and parameters from first principles.

Contribution

It introduces a novel first-principles-based mechanism and mathematical description for vesicle size distribution and growth kinetics.

Findings

Size distribution is positively skewed and time-dependent.

Vesicle critical size grows with an exponent of 0.25.

A constant characterizing amphiphile absorption is proposed.

Abstract

A mechanism is proposed for the growth of vesicles dispersed in a liquid solvent and a size distribution function is obtained for the vesicles, both from the first principles calculations. This distribution function is shown to be positively skewed and evolving in time obeying a Fokker-Planck type equation. The critical size of the spherical vesicles is shown to grow in time with an exponent of 0.25. A constant is suggested that characterizes how easily a vesicle can absorb amphiphiles into its periphery.