Scaling behavior and conductance mechanisms of ion transport in atomically thin graphene nano/subnanopores

Huang, X-Y, Cui, Y, Ying, C ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7279-1388, Tian, J and Liu, Z, 2025. Scaling behavior and conductance mechanisms of ion transport in atomically thin graphene nano/subnanopores. Nano Letters, 25 (4), pp. 1722-1728. ISSN 1530-6984

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Abstract

Ion transport through atomically thin nano/subnanopores, such as those in monolayer graphene, presents challenges to traditional ion conduction models, primarily due to extreme confinement effects and hydration interactions. Under these conditions, existing models fail to account for conductance behaviors at the nano- and subnanometer scales. In this study, we perform a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of ion transport in monolayer graphene nano/subnanopores across varying salt concentrations. We introduce a conductance model that accurately predicts the observed scaling behavior by addressing the interaction between counterions and the edges of atomically thin pores, where counterion movement is constrained by the pore’s structure. This model also quantifies the hydration energy barrier, highlighting the impact of the hydration shell structures on ion transport efficiency. Our findings reveal that hydrated potassium ions traverse these pores with higher efficiency than previously estimated, offering new insights into ion transport mechanisms under atomic-scale confinement.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Nano Letters
Creators:	Huang, X.-Y., Cui, Y., Ying, C., Tian, J. and Liu, Z.
Publisher:	American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date:	29 January 2025
Volume:	25
Number:	4
ISSN:	1530-6984
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c06218 DOI 2371006 Other
Rights:	This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Nano Letters, copyright © 2025 American Chemical Society after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work see https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c06218.
Divisions:	Schools > School of Science and Technology
Record created by:	Melissa Cornwell
Date Added:	19 Feb 2025 10:10
Last Modified:	19 Feb 2025 10:10
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/53076

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