Dynamic and Static Measurements of A Single and Double Phospholipid Bilayer System

We investigate the surface height fluctuations of single and double bilayers of DPPE supported on silicon using x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS). In this techique, x-rays are incident on the membrane in a grazing incidence geometry and diffusely scattered x-rays are measured using an area detector. Time fluctuations of the scattering pattern can then be analyzed to yield the relaxation rate of surface height fluctuations. Bilayer and double bilayer systems were prepared utilizing combination of Langmuir-Blodgett and Langmuir-Schaeffer depositions. Static structural measurements were also made on these systems as well as on more complicated systems consisting of triple and five-fold bilayers of DPPE. Relationships between structure and dynamics of these systems will be discussed.