| Abstract
| - The dependence of the interaction force between two undulating phospholipid bilayers and of the root-mean-square fluctuation of their separation distances on the average separation can be determined oncethe distribution of the intermembrane separation is known as a function of the applied pressure. However,most of the present theories for interacting membranes start by assuming that the distance distributionis symmetric, a hypothesis invalidated by Monte Carlo simulations. Here we present an approach tocalculate the distribution of the intermembrane separation for any arbitrary interaction potential andapplied pressure. The procedure is applied to a realistic interaction potential between neutral lipid bilayersin water, involving the hydration repulsion and van der Waals attraction. A comparison with existingexperiments is provided.
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