Effect of electrolyte concentration and symmetry on the heterogeneous surface charge in an electrically gated nanochannel

The present study aims to investigate utilizing field-effect for inducing heterogeneous surface charge and consequently changing the fluid flow in a solid-state nanochannel with converging-diverging periodicity. It is shown that the combination of geometry and applied gate voltage (V_{G}) would generate heterogeneous surface charge at the channel walls which can be modulated by V_{G}, i.e. a moderate V_{G} (0.7-0.9 V) causes charge inversion in diverging sections of the channel while V_{G} > 0.9 enables charge inversion in the entire channel but it is still non-uniform in each section. The results show that zeta (ζ) potential is a function of V_{G} which shows a linear to non-linear transition due to dilution of electrolyte in agreement with density functional theory and Monte Carlo simulations. In contrast, electrolyte symmetry has a minor effect on the variation of ζ potential. It is also shown that the difference in ζ potential across the channel (Δζ) increases by dilution of electrolyte and utilizing a more symmetric electrolyte with lower valances. For the first time, it is shown that Δζ presents a maximum with the V_{G}. The V_{G} corresponding to the maximum Δζ decreases with both dilution of electrolyte and higher anion valance. This is of practical importance to overcome leakage current problem of field-effect fluidic devices. It is also shown that the velocity field can be altered by changing both electrolyte concentration and symmetry. However, applying VG was found to be a more efficient way than electrolyte modifications. This includes generating circulation inside the channel which is of prime importance for applications such as mixing or separation/trapping.

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