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Leakage current in a Si-based nanopore structure and its influence on noise characteristics

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Abstract

We have measured leakage current in a silicon substrate-based nanopore membrane device immersed in an aqueous environment which typically shows the current level of few nA. This current level is compared with the measured current density (400 nA/cm2 at 1 V) from the pristine Si wafer (p-type, 1016/cm3 boron doping) indicating that the exposed Si surface in a nanopore membrane device acts as an electrochemical reaction site. The leakage current is drastically reduced from >10 nA to <100 pA at 1 V by the deposition of a dielectric layer to the Si-based nanopore membrane device. We also noted that the root-mean-square noise of the ionic current is also reduced from 38 to 28 pA in correlation with the reduction of leakage current, indicating that electrochemical reaction provides one of the major sources of noise.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MEST) (2010--0017697).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, 599 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, 151-742, Korea

    Min-Hyun Lee, Hyun-Mi Kim & Ki-Bum Kim

  2. WCU Hybrid Materials Program, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, 599 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, 151-742, Korea

    Ju-Hyun Lee & Ki-Bum Kim

  3. Institute of Life Sciences and Resources and Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Kyung Hee University, Yongin, 446-701, Korea

    Young-Rok Kim

  4. Department of Biological Engineering and Biohybrid Systems Research Center, Inha University, Incheon, 402-751, Korea

    Tae-Joon Jeon

  5. Advanced Institutes of Convergence Technology, Seoul National University, Suwon, 443-270, Korea

    Y. Eugene Pak

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  1. Min-Hyun Lee
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  2. Ju-Hyun Lee
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  3. Hyun-Mi Kim
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  4. Young-Rok Kim
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  7. Ki-Bum Kim
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Correspondence to Ki-Bum Kim.

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Lee, MH., Lee, JH., Kim, HM. et al. Leakage current in a Si-based nanopore structure and its influence on noise characteristics. Microfluid Nanofluid 16, 123–130 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10404-013-1192-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10404-013-1192-y

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