Pressure Induced Enlargement and Ionic Current Rectification in Symmetric Nanopores

TL;DR

This study explores how pressure differences influence ionic current rectification and membrane deformation in symmetric nanopores, revealing new insights into their physical behavior under mechanical stress.

Contribution

It introduces the investigation of pressure-induced effects on nanopore deformation and ionic current rectification using an AC approach, which is novel in this context.

Findings

Pressure causes elastic deformation of the membrane.

Ionic current rectification increases with pressure due to pore entrance effects.

The study demonstrates the interplay between mechanical deformation and ionic transport.

Abstract

Nanopores in solid state membranes are a tool able to probe nanofluidic phenomena or can act as a single molecular sensor. They also have diverse applications in filtration, desalination or osmotic power generation. Many of these applications involve chemical, or hydrostatic pressure differences, which act on both the supporting membrane and the ion transport through the pore. By using pressure differences between the sides of the membrane, and an alternating current approach to probe ion transport, we investigate two distinct physical phenomena: the elastic deformation of the membrane through the measurment of strain at the nanopore, and the growth of ionic current rectification with pressure due to pore entrance effects.