Light-driven Conversion of Silicon Nitride Nanopore to Nanonet for Single Protein Trapping Analysis.

The single-molecule technique for investigation of an unlabeled protein in solution is very attractive but with great challenges. Nanopore sensing as a label-free tool can be used for collecting the structural information of individual proteins, but currently offer only limited capabilities due to the fast translocation of target. Here, w e developed a reliable and facile method to convert the silicon nitride nanopore to a stable nanonet platform for single entity sensing by electrophoretic or electroosmotic trapping. The nanonet w as fabricated based on a material reorganization process caused by the e-beam and light irradiation treatments. Using protein molecule as the model, it reveals that the solid-state nanonet can produce collision and trapping flipping signals of protein, which provide more structural information than traditional nanopore sensing. More important, thanks to the excellent stability of the solid-state silicon nitride nanonet, w e demonstrated that the UV irradiation induced structural change process of an individual protein can be captured. The developed nanonet supplies a robust platform for the single-entity studies but not limited to proteins. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.