We report a high-resolution x-ray study of a model multilayer fluid membrane system in the lyotropic L_α phase of a quaternary microemulsion system. The structure factor exhibits power-law behavior characteristic of a Landau-Peierls system. As a function of intermembrane distance 3.8 nm≤d≤16.3 nm, the exponent η(d) which describes the algebraic decay of layer correlations is predicted by the model of Helfrich where entropic steric repulsions dominate intermembrane interactions.
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Safinya et al. (1986) studied this question.