Related papers: Two-dimensional adaptive membranes with programmab…
To overcome the traditional paradigm of filtration, where separation is essentially performed upon steric sieving principles, we explore the concept of dynamic osmosis through active membranes. A partially permeable membrane presents a…
The need for organisms to regulate their volume and osmolarity when surrounded by freshwater is a basic physical challenge for many bacteria, protists and algae. Taking inspiration from the contractile vacuole complex found in many…
Ion channels are proteins with a hole down the middle embedded in cell membranes. Membranes form insulating structures and the channels through them allow and control the movement of charged particles, spherical ions, mostly Na+, K+, Ca++,…
The permeability is one of the most fundamental transport properties in soft matter physics, material engineering, and nanofluidics. Here we report by means of Langevin simulations of ideal penetrants in a nanoscale membrane made of a fixed…
Membranes are of great technological and biological as well as theoretical interest. Two main classes of membranes can be distinguished: Fluid membranes and polymerized, tethered membranes. Here, we review progress in the theoretical…
With the ability to selectively control ionic flux, biological protein ion channels perform a fundamental role in many physiological processes. For practical applications that require the functionality of a biological ion channel, graphene…
Mirroring their role in electrical and optical physics, two-dimensional crystals are emerging as novel platforms for fluid separations and water desalination, which are hydrodynamic processes that occur in nanoscale environments. For…
The rapid technological progress in the 21st century demands new multi-functional materials applicable to a wide variety of industries. Two-dimensional (2D) materials are predicted to have a revolutionary impact on the cost, size, weight,…
Membranes regulate transport in a wide variety of industrial and biological applications. The microscale geometry of the membrane can significantly affect overall transport through the membrane, but the precise nature of this multiscale…
Ion transport through nanopores permeates through many areas of science and technology, from cell behavior to sensing and separation to catalysis and batteries. Two-dimensional materials, such as graphene, molybdenum disulfide (MoS$_2$),…
Artificial microswimmers are a new technology with promising microfluidics and biomedical applications, such as directed cargo transport, microscale assembly, and targeted drug delivery. A fundamental barrier to realising this potential is…
Graphene oxide (GO) membranes continue to attract intense interest due to their unique molecular sieving properties combined with fast permeation rates. However, the membranes' use has been limited mostly to aqueous solutions because GO…
Model biomembrane systems play a crucial role in advancing biomedical research by providing simplified yet effective platforms for exploring complex biological mechanisms. These systems span a wide range of scales, from…
Because they may provide ultrathin, high-flux, and energy-efficient membranes for precise ionic and molecular sieving in aqueous solution, GO membranes (partially oxidized, stacked sheets of graphene) have shown great potential in water…
Many of the most important processes in cells take place on and across membranes. With the rise of an impressive array of powerful quantitative methods for characterizing these membranes, it is an opportune time to reflect on the structure…
Polymer materials with low water uptake exhibit a highly heterogeneous interior, characterized by water clusters in the form of nanodroplets and nanochannels. Here, based on our recent insights from computer simulations, we argue that water…
Technical challenges in molecule sensing and chemical detection have created an increasing demand for transformative materials with high sensitivity and specificity. Biohybrid nanopores have attracted growing interest as they can ideally…
The dynamics of suspended two-dimensional (2D) materials has received increasing attention during the last decade, yielding new techniques to study and interpret the physics that governs the motion of atomically thin layers. This has led to…
Isolated, atomically thin conducting membranes of graphite, called graphene, have recently been the subject of intense research with the hope that practical applications in fields ranging from electronics to energy science will emerge.…
Ion channels are specific proteins present in the membranes of living cells. They control the flow of specific ions through a cell, initiated by an ion channel's electrochemical gradient. In doing so, they control important physiological…