Feb 3
From cellular processes in the human body, to emerging technologies like sensors and lab-on-a-chip devices, the movement of ions (charged particles like sodium and potassium) in water plays a critical role in their functioning. Scientists have long known that electric fields can be used to control ion flow, but only in low-salt conditions. In real-world systems like seawater, blood, or industrial wastewater, high salt concentrations usually cancel out electrical control, making precise regulation extremely difficult.
In this study, researchers have tried to investigate what happens when salty water is forced through channels so small, they are nearly the size of the ions themselves. At this extreme scale, ions have no room to ‘ignore’ their surroundings. The team was able to replicate the exact confinement they required through a naturally occurring clay mineral, called vermiculite. Microscopically, it looks like a stack of ultra-thin sheets, with gaps between them that can be controlled precisely, and negatively charged walls that strongly influence every particle that passes through. Using this approach, the team built a voltage-controlled nanofluidic device, similar to a transistor, but for ions instead of electrons. When tested with potassium ions, they achieved a record-breaking 14-fold change in conductivity under high-salt conditions.
Owing to its extensive use in agriculture and construction, vermiculite offers a compelling alternative to nanofabricated channels, combining natural abundance with structural stability, cost efficiency, and scalability. At the intersection of materials, physics, and biology, this research points toward a new generation of nanofluidic systems, inspired by how ions move in living cells.
The team includes Biswabhusan Dhal, Yechan Noh, Sanat Nalini Paltasingh, Naman Chandrakar, Siva Sankar Nemala, Aparna Rathi, Suvigya Kaushik, Prof Andrea Capasso, Prof Saroj Kumar Nayak, Prof Li-Hsien Yeh, and Prof Gopinadhan Kalon.
To read more :
nature.com/articles/s41467-0…
#RnD #IITGN #IITGNResearchers #LabOnAChip #Nanofluidics #IonTransport #IonControl #Iontronics #Biomimicry #NextGenTechnology #SmartMaterials #AdvancedMaterials #NatureCommunications
@EduMinOfIndia | @PIB_India | @PTI_News | @ANRFIndia | @Nature | @SpringerNature
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11 Aug 2021
Happy 28th Birthday to @skrutskie, she wrote short story #IonControl published in #FromACertainPointOfViewTheEmpireStrikesBack. Follow her also on Instgaram instagram.com/skrutskie/. May she have a good one.
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26 Jun 2013
NASA rocket engine runs 5 years – still not out of ions - seattlepi.com/national/artic… #nasa #ioncontrol #infinity #spacetravel
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18 Nov 2011
I gave @ioncontrol K about Photography [loved the FTOW trailer!] on @klout klout.com/user/ioncontrol/to…
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27 Sep 2011
@ioncontrol Well, it was my birthday at Barbacoa, drinks were involved. At least the red shoes made it in! (p.s. GREAT job on Saturday!!)
1 Jun 2011
@RoloTomossie @ionchild @ioncontrol Somebody carries it off, it's theirs (it weighs a ton & I;m on 3rd floor, LOL)
26 May 2011
@CH12anchorman @ioncontrol You missed it. But Doglas Adams was right... they took only the worthy... Dolphins.
30 Nov 2010
@ioncontrol Tell @ionchild that I am still honored to have followed her at @IgniteBoise. And we should've given her a curtain call!
30 Nov 2010
@ShannonMorgan @echobasevideo @RocknBowlBoise -but @ioncontrol? Why not @ionchild? She's the rock star!
23 Sep 2010
@scoteastman @EndlessNights @lettere @r7brandon @ioncontrol Think about a wiki or G-Doc then get input (crowdsourced, even)
23 Sep 2010
@EndlessNights @lettere @entrep_thinking @r7brandon @ioncontrol @scoteastman As writing unfolds? HMMM... film-within-a film? #DavidLynch
RT @ioncontrol: My contribution to Idaho Life w/ John Miller airs tonight in the 10 pm newscast. Tune in to see Mallard Pt. Road Runners!!
Glad to have another set of hands on board! RT @ioncontrol: I'm training today to be the backup web producer for KTVB.COM
RT @ioncontrol: At the church the arrested Idahoans in Haiti are from. Everyone is here: ABC,NBC,CBS CNN,DATELINE,TODAY SHOW and locals.
6 Jan 2010
@ShannonMorgan Frank Zang said she wanted to let it slide & and it's her call. (@ioncontrol @daveredford)