Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 June 2014
In this paper the dynamics of an inextensible capacitive elastic membrane under an electric field is investigated in the long-wave (lubrication) leaky dielectric framework, where a sixth-order nonlinear differential equation with an integral constraint is derived. Steady equilibrium profiles for a non-conducting membrane in a direct current (DC) field are found to depend only on the membrane excess area and the volume under the membrane. Linear stability analysis on a tensionless flat membrane in a DC field gives the growth rate in terms of membrane conductance and electric properties in the bulk. Numerical simulations of a capacitive conducting membrane under an alternating current (AC) field elucidate how variation of the membrane tension correlates with the nonlinear membrane dynamics. Different membrane dynamics, such as undulation and flip-flop, are found at different electric field strength and membrane area. In particular a travelling wave on the membrane is found as a response to a periodic AC field in the perpendicular direction.