Letter abstract
Nature Nanotechnology 2, 104 - 107 (2006)
Published online: 28 January 2007 | doi:10.1038/nnano.2006.211
Subject Categories: Carbon nanotubes and fullerenes | Electronic properties and devices | Nanofluidics
A nanoscale probe for fluidic and ionic transport
Bertrand Bourlon1,2, Joyce Wong2, Csilla Mikó3, László Forró3 & Marc Bockrath1
Abstract
Surface science and molecular biology are often concerned with systems governed by fluid dynamics at the nanoscale, where different physical behaviour is expected1, 2. With advances in nanofabrication techniques, the study of fluid dynamics around a nano-object or in a nano channel is now more accessible experimentally and has become an active field of research1, 3, 4, 5. However, developing nanoscale probes that can act as flow sensors and that can be easily integrated remains difficult. Many studies demonstrate that carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have outstanding potential for nanoscale sensing, acting as strain6, 7, 8 or charge sensors in chemical9, 10, 11 and biological12, 13, 14, 15 environments. Although nanotube flow sensors composed of bulk nanotubes have been demonstrated16, they are not readily miniaturized to nanoscale dimensions. Here we report that individual carbon nanotube transistors of 
2 nm diameter, incorporated into microfluidic channels, locally sense the change in electrostatic potential induced by the flow of an ionic solution. We demonstrate that the nanotube conductance changes in response to the flow rate, functioning as a nanoscale flow sensor.
- California Institute of Technology, Mail Stop 128-95, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
- Schlumberger-Doll Research, 1 Hampshire Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
- EPFL, CH-1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
Correspondence to: Marc Bockrath1 e-mail: mwb@caltech.edu
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