Equivalent circuit model modified for free-standing bilayer lipid membranes beyond 1 TΩ

A cell is the basic functional unit of living organisms. Bilayer lipid membranes (BLMs), which form cell membranes can be assembled by using artificial methods. The electrochemical characteristics of BLMs are normally investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS); however, the equivalent circuit need to be modified by the experimental conditions. In this study, we formed plain BLMs to determine the underlying equivalent circuit model of free-standing BLMs, and we measured the electrical characteristics using EIS. To analyze the results of EIS, we proposed equivalent circuit models including electrical double layer (EDL) effects on both sides of a BLM. We also extracted and evaluated the electrochemical parameters; the aperture-suspended BLMs using an Si chip having tapered edge recorded TΩ-order membrane resistances, which were one order higher than those reported in most previous studies. Regarding the capacitances of EDL, we compared the extracted values and the calculated results.