Sealing of submicrometer wells by a shear-driven lipid bilayer.

A supported lipid bilayer (SLB) was formed in a microfluidic channel by vesicle fusion. The SLB, formed on a flat part of the surface, was driven by the shear forces of a bulk flow above the SLB to a part of the surface with embedded submicrometer wells. When using a bulk solution with a pH of 9.5 the advancing lipid bilayer sealed the wells, creating free-spanning membranes, whereas at a pH of 8.0 the SLB instead followed the contour of the wells.