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IntroductionMixtures of surfactant, long-chain alcohol, and water can yield a lamellar gel below the gel-liquid crystal phase transition temperature T C . The assembly called α-gel or α-form hydrated crystal is a type of lamellar gel; i.e., the alkyl chains of surfactant and long-chain alcohol molecules are hexagonally packed within bilayers in the lamellar gel network 1 3 . α-Gels can contain a large amount of water in the spaces not only between the lamellar bilayers, but also between onion-like or vesicular domains 4,5 . The viscoelasticity of the α-gel was largely affected by the amount of water localized in these spaces. Furthermore, the viscoelasticity of α-gel can be controlled by the domain shape 6 8 , domain size 9 , and background electrolyte concentration 10,11 . α-Gel is widely used in cream-like personal care products such as hair conditioners. Cationic surfactants are used in hair conditioners owing to their ability to adsorb onto hair surfaces 12,13 . The N-3-dimethylamino propyl