Protein and Ion Filter

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We shown recently that a semiconductor membrane made of two thin layers of opposite (n- and p-) doping can perform electrically tunable ion current rectification and filtering in a nanopore. Our model is based on the solution of the 3D Poisson equation for the electrostatic potential in a double-cone nanopore combined with a transport model. It predicts that, for appropriate biasing of the membrane-electrolyte system, transitions from ohmic behavior to sharp rectification with vanishing leakage current are achievable. Furthermore, ion current rectifying and filtering regimes of the nanopore correspond to different charge states in the p-n membrane, which can be tuned with appropriate biasing of the n- and p- layers.

Reference: "P-n semiconductor membrane for electrically tunable ion current rectification and filtering", M.E. Gracheva, J. Vidal and J.-P. Leburton, NanoLetters 7(6), p. 1717-1722 (2007).
(This article was featured in: www.physorg.com, www.nsf.gov, IOP, Beckman Institute, NCSA, Electrical and computer engineering Department of UIUC and around the world)

Related papers

  1. "Simulation of ionic current through the nanopore in a double-layered semiconductor membrane", A. Nikolaev, M. Gracheva, Nanotechnology 22(16), p. 165202 (2011).
  2. "Multilayered semiconductor membranes for nanopore ionic conductance modulation", M.E. Gracheva, D.V. Melnikov and J.-P. Leburton, ACS Nano 2(11), p. 2349-2355 (2008).
  3. "Simulation of electrically tunable semiconductor nanopores for ion current/single bio-molecule manipulation", M.E. Gracheva, J.-P. Leburton, J. Comput. Electronics 7(1), p. 6-9 (2008).
  4. "P-n semiconductor membrane for electrically tunable ion current rectification and filtering", M.E. Gracheva, J. Vidal and J.-P. Leburton, NanoLetters 7(6), p. 1717-1722 (2007).
    (This article was featured in: www.physorg.com, www.nsf.gov, IOP, Beckman Institute, NCSA, Electrical and computer engineering Department of UIUC and around the world)
  5. "Electrolytic charge inversion at the liquid-solid interface in a nanopore in a doped semiconductor membrane", M.E. Gracheva and J.-P. Leburton, Nanotechnology 18, p. 145704-145710 (2007).
  6. "Electrically Tunable Solid-State Silicon Nanopore Ion Filter", J. Vidal, M.E. Gracheva and J.-P. Leburton, Nanoscale Research Letters 2, p. 61-68 (2007).