The metastability of lipid vesicle shapes in uniaxial extensional flow

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Shishkin, M. A., Pikina, E. S.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Shishkin, M. A.
Pikina, E. S.
author_facet Shishkin, M. A.
Pikina, E. S.
contents In this work, we investigate the elastic properties of deflated vesicles and their shape dynamics in uniaxial extensional flow. By analysing the Helfrich bending energy and viscous flow stresses in the limit of highly elongated shapes, we demonstrate that all stationary vesicle configurations are metastable. For vesicles with small reduced volume, we identify the type of bifurcation at which the stationary state is lost, leading to unbounded vesicle elongation in time. We show that the stationary vesicle length remains finite at the critical extension rate. The critical behaviour of the stationary vesicle length and of the growth rates of small perturbations is obtained analytically and confirmed by direct numerical computations. The beginning stage of the unbounded elongation dynamics is simulated numerically, in agreement with the analytical predictions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_20840
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The metastability of lipid vesicle shapes in uniaxial extensional flow
Shishkin, M. A.
Pikina, E. S.
Soft Condensed Matter
Fluid Dynamics
In this work, we investigate the elastic properties of deflated vesicles and their shape dynamics in uniaxial extensional flow. By analysing the Helfrich bending energy and viscous flow stresses in the limit of highly elongated shapes, we demonstrate that all stationary vesicle configurations are metastable. For vesicles with small reduced volume, we identify the type of bifurcation at which the stationary state is lost, leading to unbounded vesicle elongation in time. We show that the stationary vesicle length remains finite at the critical extension rate. The critical behaviour of the stationary vesicle length and of the growth rates of small perturbations is obtained analytically and confirmed by direct numerical computations. The beginning stage of the unbounded elongation dynamics is simulated numerically, in agreement with the analytical predictions.
title The metastability of lipid vesicle shapes in uniaxial extensional flow
topic Soft Condensed Matter
Fluid Dynamics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.20840