High durability and stability of 2D nanofluidic devices for long-term single-molecule sensing
Mukeshchand Thakur, Nianduo Cai, Miao Zhang, Yunfei Teng, Andrey Chernev, Mukesh Tripathi, Yanfei Zhao, Michał Macha, Farida Elharouni, Martina Lihter, Liping Wen, András Kis, Aleksandra Rađenović
Abstract
Abstract Nanopores in two-dimensional (2D) membranes hold immense potential in single-molecule sensing, osmotic power generation, and information storage. Recent advances in 2D nanopores, especially on single-layer MoS 2 , focus on the scalable growth and manufacturing of nanopore devices. However, there still remains a bottleneck in controlling the nanopore stability in atomically thin membranes. Here, we evaluate the major factors responsible for the instability of the monolayer MoS 2 nanopores. We identify chemical oxidation and delamination of monolayers from their underlying substrates as the major reasons for the instability of MoS 2 nanopores. Surface modification of the substrate and reducing the oxygen from the measurement solution improves nanopore stability and dramatically increases their shelf-life. Understanding nanopore growth and stability can provide insights into controlling the pore size, shape and can enable long-term measurements with a high signal-to-noise ratio and engineering durable nanopore devices.