Magnetic field-induced ordering of a polymer-grafted biomembrane-mimetic hydrogel

A biomembrane-mimetic complex fluid that spontaneously orients in the presence of a magnetic field to yield a highly ordered lamellar structure is described. Macroscopically oriented lamellae were produced by exploiting the inverted thermoreversible phase transition of the material, that is, by aligning the sample below the phase transition temperature (<16 degrees C) (i.e., in the fluid, hexagonal micellar phase) and warming to produce the lamellar gel phase in a 7.05 T magnetic field. The in situ field-induced alignment was studied by deuterium NMR. The lamellar domains were found to preferentially orient perpendicular to the applied field (negative order). Characterization of the magnetic field-induced anisotropy by polarized optical microscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering/diffraction (SAXS) indicates that it persists even upon field termination. The directional alignment was flipped by 90 degrees, with the lamellar domains oriented parallel to the field (positive order), simply by modifying the composition through the addition of a lanthanide ion (Eu3+). The system offers the opportunity to spacially organize both membrane and aqueous soluble proteins in an anisotropic matrix, thereby facilitating structure and dynamic studies using a range of techniques, including magnetic resonance (both NMR as well as EPR), optical spectroscopy, and small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering.