  The effect of rigid inclusions on the phase behavior of a film containing a
mixture of lipid molecules is investigated. In the proposed model, the
inclusion-induced deformation of the film, and the resulting energy cost are
strongly dependent upon the spontaneous curvature of the mixed film. The
spontaneous curvature is in turn strongly influenced by the composition of
film. This coupling between the film composition and the energy per inclusion
leads to a lateral modulation of the composition, which follows the local
curvature of the membrane. In particular, it is shown that the inclusion may
induce a global phase separation in a film which would otherwise be
homogeneously mixed. The mixed film is then composed of patches of different
average composition, separated by the inclusions. This process may be of
relevance to explain some aspects of lipid-protein association in biological
membranes.
