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F Graner

Publications and source records attributed to F Graner.

13 recordsLinked to original sources

Coarsening of three-dimensional grains in crystals, or bubbles in dry foams, tends towards a universal, statistically scale-invariant regime.

We perform extensive Potts model simulations of three-dimensional dry foam coarsening. Starting with 2.25 million bubbles, we have enough statistics to fulfill the three constraints required for the study of statistical scale invariance: first, enough time for the transient to end and reach the scaling state; then, enough time in the scaling state itself to characterize its properties; and finally, enough bubbles at the end to avoid spurious finite size effects. In the scaling state, we find that the average surface area of the bubbles increases linearly with time. The geometry (bubble shape and size) and topology (number of faces and edges), as well as their correlations, become constant in time. Their distributions agree with the data of the literature. We present an analytical model (universal, up to parameters extracted from the simulations) for a disordered foam minimizing its free energy, which agrees with the simulations. We discuss the limitations of the simulations and of the model.

Journal Article↗

Structure and fluctuations of a single floating lipid bilayer.

A single lipid molecular bilayer of 17 or 18 carbon chain phosphocholines, floating in water near a flat wall, is prepared in the bilayer gel phase and then heated to the fluid phase. Its structure (electron density profile) and height fluctuations are determined by using x-ray reflectivity and non-specular scattering. By fitting the off-specular signal to that calculated for a two-dimensional membrane using a Helfrich Hamiltonian, we determine the three main physical quantities that govern the bilayer height fluctuations: The wall attraction potential is unexpectedly low; the surface tension, roughly independent on chain length and temperature, is moderate (approximately 5 x 10(-4) J.m(-2)) but large enough to dominate the intermediate range of the fluctuation spectrum; and the bending modulus abruptly decreases by an order-of-magnitude from 10(-18) J to 10(-19) J at the bilayer gel-to-fluid transition.

Electrons↗

Coalescence of crystalline drops.

We present the first experimental analysis of drop coalescence in a case where the dynamics is not governed by viscous dissipation in the bulk nor by the inertia of the fluid flow, only by the geometry and mobility of surfaces. We found such a situation in the physics of 3He crystals near 0.32 K where the latent heat of crystallization vanishes. Two crystalline drops of 3He coalesce if their crystalline orientations are identical: a neck forms after the contact at time t=0, and the shape evolves towards that of one convex crystal by local growth and melting in a fraction of a second. We have found that the neck radius initially increases as t(1/3), as predicted by Maris. This behavior is also expected for superfluid drops. It is clearly distinguished from the logarithmic behavior and from the t(1/2) power law which have been predicted by Eggers et al. in more usual situations.

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Three-dimensional bubble clusters: shape, packing, and growth rate.

We consider three-dimensional clusters of equal-volume bubbles packed around a central bubble and calculate their energy and optimal shape. We obtain the surface area and bubble pressures to improve on existing growth laws for three-dimensional bubble clusters. We discuss the possible number of bubbles that can be packed around a central one: the "kissing problem," here adapted to deformable objects.

Journal Article↗

Elasticity and plasticity of two-dimensional amorphous solid layers of beta-lactoglobulin.

We investigate the mechanical properties of a two-dimensional amorphous solid. It is formed spontaneously by the adsorption of a protein (the beta-lactoglobulin) at the surface of water. We measure its mechanical response in both elastic and plastic regimes by applying a point-like force (using a glass fiber). We compare our results with previous measurements of shear moduli using a floating torsion device.

Computer Simulation↗

Mixing and sorting of bidisperse two-dimensional bubbles.

We have examined a number of candidates for the minimum-surface-energy arrangement of two-dimensional clusters composed of N bubbles of area 1 and N bubbles of area lambda (lambda< or =1). These include hexagonal bubbles sorted into two monodisperse honeycomb tilings, and various mixed periodic tilings with at most four bubbles per unit cell. We identify, as a function of lambda, the minimal configuration for N-->infinity. For finite N, the energy of the external (i.e., cluster-gas) boundary and that of the interface between honeycombs in "phase-separated" clusters have to be taken into account. We estimate these contributions and find the lowest total energy configuration for each pair (N, lambda). As lambda is varied, this alternates between a circular cluster of one of the mixed tilings, and "partial wetting" of the monodisperse honeycomb of bubble area 1 by the monodisperse honeycomb of bubble area lambda.

Journal Article↗

Lower bounds for the surface energy of two-dimensional foams.

Amongst the two-dimensional cellular patterns that fill a plane, dry foams at stable equilibrium typify a particular subset for which the total perimeter P of cell boundaries ( i.e., films between bubbles) has a local minimum. For a given set of bubble areas Ai (i=1,..., N), P can be written in the form P=R(SigmaN(i=1) square root Ai)/2, where R is topology dependent. We seek the set of areas Ai and the cluster topology that minimise R, and propose lower bounds for R that set lower bounds for the surface energy of i) individual bubbles, with circular edges meeting at 2pi/3 angles at vertices (Plateau cells), and ii) infinite periodic bubble clusters.

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Equilibrium states and ground state of two-dimensional fluid foams.

We study the equilibrium energies of two-dimensional (2D) noncoarsening fluid foams, which consist of bubbles with fixed areas. The equilibrium states correspond to local minima of the total perimeter. We present a theoretical derivation of energy minima; experiments with ferrofluid foams, which can be either highly distorted, locally relaxed, or globally annealed; and Monte Carlo simulations using the extended large-Q Potts model. For a dry foam with small size variance we develop physical insight and an electrostatic analogy, which enables us to (i) find an approximate value of the global minimum perimeter, accounting for (small) area disorder, the topological distribution, and physical boundary conditions; (ii) conjecture the corresponding pattern and topology: small bubbles sort inward and large bubbles sort outward, topological charges of the same signs "repel" while charges of the opposite signs "attract;" (iii) define local and global markers to determine directly from an image how far a foam is from its ground state; (iv) conjecture that, in a local perimeter minimum at prescribed topology, the pressure distribution and thus the edge curvature are unique. Some results also apply to 3D foams.

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Interaction of the third helix of Antennapedia homeodomain and a phospholipid monolayer, studied by ellipsometry and PM-IRRAS at the air-water interface.

The penetratin peptide, a 16 amino acid sequence extracted from Antennapedia homeodomain, is able to translocate across a neural cell membrane through an unknown mechanism, most likely a non-specific interaction with membrane lipids. Beyond its potential application as vector targeting small hydrophilic molecules and enabling them to reach a cell nucleus, this observation raises intriguing questions concerning the physico-chemistry of peptide-lipid interactions. Here we present a study of the role of lipid surface pressure and head charge on the mechanism of interaction. This was performed using optical techniques: surface infrared spectroscopy and ellipsometry, applied to a monolayer of phospholipids deposited at the air-water interface. Determination of the structure and orientation of peptides and lipids (separately or together) evidenced that electrostatic rather than amphiphilic interactions determine the peptide adsorption and its action on lipids.

1,2-Dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine↗

Quantitative evaluation of tissue-specific cell adhesion at the level of a single cell pair.

Tissue specificity of cell adhesion was directly characterized in a unit cell interaction using a novel laser trapping cell manipulator in combination with a fixed micropipet. We quantified the adhesive specificity of endodermal and ectodermal epithelial cells from Hydra, which are known to sort out within hours after being dissociated and then randomly reaggregate. It was shown that homotypic pairs of cells from the same tissue source could adhere to each other within a certain period, while heterotypic pairs could not form an adhesion. It was also found that the adhesion probability was higher in endodermal epithelial cell pairs than in ectodermal epithelial cell pairs. The former pairs could adhere with a contact period of less than 30 sec, while 60% of the latter remained nonadherent even after a 6-min forced contact. The adhesive strength of the latter was estimated to be as large as 30 pN, while that of the former was much larger than 50 pN. The tissue-specific adhesivity quantitatively measured provides a new insight into the mechanism of cell sorting.

Animals↗