Researchers aim to integrate nanoelectonic transistors and biological elements
There is no doubt that electronics has almost made us addicted to their services and it’s hard to exclude them from our daily lives. Researchers are still looking to develop better and more efficient technologies around the world. However, a team of scientists at Lawrence National Laboratory is looking to give an altogether different direction to electronics. A combination of biological components and electronics is the next level of development in nano-technology. They have developed a versatile hybrid platform that uses lipid-coated nanowires which are further used to build bionanoelectronics.
What is inspiring them to carry forward this research are the complex biological processes which even leaves computers far behind in speed and efficiency. Unlike the electronic devices that use electric fields or currents to carry information, biological processes uses arsenal of membrane receptors and other nerve impulses to do the same. Further, creation of smaller nanomaterials has increased the possibility of integrating biological molecules of the same size in a compatible manner.
The researchers incorporated lipid bilayer membranes into silicon nanowire transistors by covering the nanowire with a continuous lipid bilayer shell that forms a barrier between the nanowire surface and solution species. The team successfully demonstrated that membrane pores can be controlled by changing the voltage of the device. As the team hopes, if this mingling of the two electronic and biological elements is achieved, more efficient electronic systems can be developed.
Via: PublicAffairs
