ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with nonmedical applications of liposomes and presents liposomes as a unique realization of the soft condensed state of matter. Liposomes are therefore finite systems which are far from the thermodynamic limit and hence may display distinct finite-size effects in their thermodynamic behavior. The many-particle character of liposomes is the central issue of the present review, which seeks to clarify the manner in which their conformational and thermodynamic properties are controlled by the cooperative and fluctuating modes in the lipid bilayer that makes up the liposome. A computer-simulation approach is particularly suited for the calculation of the conformational and the thermodynamic properties of liposomes as these are controlled by collective phenomena. For many-component liposomes, phase transitions imply phase equilibria and phase-separation phenomena, i.e., global static phase separation, which may strongly alter the lateral molecular organization of the liposome and its conformational properties.
