Segregation of molecules in lipid bilayer spreading through metal nanogates.
A new methodology for nanoscopic molecular filtering was developed using a substrate with a periodic array of metallic nanogates with various widths between 75 and 500 nm. A self-spreading lipid bilayer was employed as the molecular transport and filtering medium. Dye-labeled molecules doped in the self-spreading lipid bilayer were filtered after the spreading less than a few tens of micrometers on the nanogate array. Quantitative analysis of the spreading dynamics suggests that the filtering effect originates from the formation of the chemical potential barrier at the nanogate region, which is believed to be due to structural change such as compression imposed on the spreading lipid bilayer at the gate. A highly localized chemical potential barrier affects the ability of the doped dye-labeled molecules to penetrate the gate. The use of the self-spreading lipid bilayer allows molecular transportation without the use of any external field such as an electric field as is used in electrophoresis. The present system could be applied micro- and nanoscopic device technologies as it provides a completely nonbiased filtering methodology.
Nabika
Hideki
H
Division of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-0810, Japan.
Iijima
Naozumi
N
Takimoto
Baku
B
Ueno
Kosei
K
Misawa
Hiroaki
H
Murakoshi
Kei
K
D000465:Algorithms; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000737:chemistry; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000737:chemistry*; D008560:Membrane Fluidity; D008670:Metals / Q000737:chemistry*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines / Q000737:chemistry
D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D008670:Metals; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines