Small‐angle scattering as a tool for the study of microemulsion structure

Microemulsions are equilibrium dispersions of oil and water stabilized by a surfactant‐rich sheet at the internal oil‐water interfaces. The domains of oil and water have characteristic dimensions of a few hundred Ångstroms, and so are appropriate for study with small‐angle scattering. The scattering from droplets of oil in water or water in oil may be modelled well with modern representations of the structure of colloidal suspensions, but the structure of microemulsions containing comparable amounts of oil and water is likely bicontinuous and is well represented as a disordered lamellar structure. Recent theoretical and experimental results are reviewed and extended.