Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Ion Channels

Ion Channels

The movement of ions like sodium, potassium, and calcium into and out of the cell is essential to maintain the electrochemical gradient in living cells. The ion channels—a class of membrane transport proteins—help maintain this ionic gradient for the smooth functioning of physiological activities such as maintaining cell size and volume, conducting nerve impulses, and gas and nutrient exchange.
Ion channels are specialized integral membrane proteins on the plasma membrane that allow specific...

Potentiometry: Membrane Electrodes

Potentiometry: Membrane Electrodes

Membrane electrodes, also known as p-ion electrodes, use membranes that selectively interact with free analyte ions, generating a potential difference across the membrane. The resulting membrane potential, known as the asymmetry potential, is not zero even when analyte concentrations on both sides of the membrane are equal. The membrane's response is typically not selective to a single analyte but proportional to the concentration of all ions in the sample solution capable of interacting at the...

Mechanically-gated Ion Channels

Mechanically-gated Ion Channels

Mechanically-gated ion channels are proteins found in eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell membranes that open in response to mechanical stress. Tension, compression, swelling, and shear stress can alter the conformation of the protein, opening a transmembrane channel that allows the passage of ions for signal transmission. In eukaryotes, mechanically-gated channels are distributed in several regions like the neurons, lungs, skin, bladder, and heart, where they play critical roles in numerous...

Facilitated Transport

Facilitated Transport

The chemical and physical properties of plasma membranes cause them to be selectively permeable. Since plasma membranes have both hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions, substances need to be able to transverse both regions. The hydrophobic area of membranes repels substances such as charged ions. Therefore, such substances need special membrane proteins to cross a membrane successfully. In facilitated transport, also known as facilitated diffusion, molecules and ions travel across a membrane via...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Knowledge gaps for neuromorphic ionic computing.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same author

Heterogeneous Multilayer Nanopores via Chemically Tuned Dielectric Breakdown for Single-Molecule Sensing.

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)·2026

Same author

Defect Engineering in Large-Scale CVD-Grown Hexagonal Boron Nitride: Formation, Spectroscopy, and Spin Relaxation Dynamics.

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)·2025

Same author

Advancing CAR-T Therapy for Solid Tumors: From Barriers to Clinical Progress.

Biomolecules·2025

Same author

Tunable Nanostructuring for van der Waals Materials.

ACS nano·2025

Same author

Scalable Bottom-Up Synthesis of Nanoporous Hexagonal Boron Nitride (<i>h</i>-BN) for Large-Area Atomically Thin Ceramic Membranes.

Nano letters·2025

Same journal

Correction to "Ultrasonication-Triggered Ubiquitous Assembly of Magnetic Janus Amphiphilic Nanoparticles in Cancer Theranostic Applications".

Nano letters·2026

Same journal

Tunable Proximity Valley Splitting Via Interfacial Exchange Pinning in WSe<sub>2</sub>-CrBr<sub>3</sub>-CrPS<sub>4</sub> Heterostructures.

Nano letters·2026

Same journal

Nanoscale Organization of Membrane Tension during Neutrophil Extracellular Trap Formation Revealed by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging.

Nano letters·2026

Same journal

Pressure-Tuned Plasmonic Propagation on a Silver Nanowire.

Nano letters·2026

Same journal

Intrinsic Superconducting Gap in Bilayer KCa<sub>2</sub>Fe<sub>4</sub>As<sub>4</sub>F<sub>2</sub> and Decoupled Monolayer FeAs.

Nano letters·2026

Same journal

Programmable Hydrogen-Assisted Chemical Vapor Deposition Growth and Bipolar Transport in Two-Dimensional MoO<sub>2</sub> Nanoflakes.

Nano letters·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

Published on: May 3, 2021

Ionic selectivity of single nanochannels.

Ivan Vlassiouk¹, Sergei Smirnov, Zuzanna Siwy

¹Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA. ivlassio@uci.edu

|June 19, 2008

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Single nanochannel devices show promise for ion control. Device performance depends on dimensions, surface charge, and electrolyte concentration, with simple models often sufficient for accurate predictions.

More Related Videos

Double-barreled and Concentric Microelectrodes for Measurement of Extracellular Ion Signals in Brain Tissue

Double-barreled and Concentric Microelectrodes for Measurement of Extracellular Ion Signals in Brain Tissue

Published on: September 5, 2015

Membrane Transport Processes Analyzed by a Highly Parallel Nanopore Chip System at Single Protein Resolution

Membrane Transport Processes Analyzed by a Highly Parallel Nanopore Chip System at Single Protein Resolution

Published on: August 16, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

Published on: May 3, 2021

Double-barreled and Concentric Microelectrodes for Measurement of Extracellular Ion Signals in Brain Tissue

Double-barreled and Concentric Microelectrodes for Measurement of Extracellular Ion Signals in Brain Tissue

Published on: September 5, 2015

Membrane Transport Processes Analyzed by a Highly Parallel Nanopore Chip System at Single Protein Resolution

Membrane Transport Processes Analyzed by a Highly Parallel Nanopore Chip System at Single Protein Resolution

Published on: August 16, 2016

Area of Science:

Nanotechnology
Physical Chemistry
Electrochemistry

Background:

Growing interest in single nanochannel ionic devices like filters and diodes.
These devices offer control over ion transport and rectification.
Understanding nanopore performance is crucial for device optimization.

Purpose of the Study:

To theoretically investigate factors influencing nanopore performance.
Key parameters studied include dimensions, surface charge, electrolyte concentration, and applied bias.
Comparison of numerical solutions with analytical approximations.

Main Methods:

Numerical solutions of Poisson, Nernst-Planck (PNP), and Navier-Stokes (NS) equations.
Comparison with one-dimensional analytical approximations.
Theoretical analysis of nanopore behavior under various conditions.

Main Results:

Decreasing nanopore length affects ionic current and selectivity due to external processes.
Electroosmosis contribution is significant in highly charged nanochannels but often negligible.
Estimates for critical electric fields causing decreased selectivity and current saturation are provided.

Conclusions:

The study validates the use of simplified one-dimensional approximations in many nanopore scenarios.
Provides insights into the operational limits and design considerations for ionic devices.
Highlights the interplay between device geometry and electrical/ionic conditions.