Prof. Mark A. Reed received his Ph.D. in Physics from Syracuse University in 1983, after which he joined Texas Instruments. In 1990 Mark joined Yale University where he holds the Harold Hodgkinson Chair of Engineering and Applied Science, and was the Founding Associate Director of the Yale Institute for Nanoscience and Quantum Engineering. His research activities have included the investigation of electronic transport in nanoscale and mesoscopic systems, artificially structured materials and devices, molecular scale electronic transport, plasmonic transport in nanostructures, and chem/bio nanosensors. Mark is the author of more than 210 professional publications and 6 books, has given 27 plenary and over 400 invited talks, and holds 33 U.S. and foreign patents on quantum effect, heterojunction, and molecular devices. He has been elected to the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering and Who's Who in the World. His awards include; Fortune Magazine "Most Promising Young Scientist" (1990), the Kilby Young Innovator Award (1994), the Fujitsu ISCS Quantum Device Award (2001), the Yale Science and Engineering Association Award for Advancement of Basic and Applied Science (2002), Fellow of the American Physical Society (2003), the IEEE Pioneer Award in Nanotechnology (2007), and Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (2009).

Title：Nanofluidic Ionic Devices
Abstract:  Solid-state nanofluidic devices have proven to be ideal systems for studying the physics of ionic transport at the nanometer length scale. When the geometrical confining size of fluids approaches the ionic Debye screening length, a number of new transport phenomena occur, which have wide ranging implications to diverse areas such as biological ion channels, desalination, and energy storage and conversion. We have demonstrated a variety of nanofluidic ionic devices which utilize controllable ion selectivity, allowing us to realize ionic diodes and field effect transistors.¹ These devices have remarkable analogies to their semiconductor counterparts, but with some important differences.

       One of the most intriguing implications of nanofluidic ionics is the ability to construct artificial ion channels.  We have demonstrated² that we can create membrane potentials similar to cellular systems, with the additional ability to tune the ion selectivity ratio. The detailed dynamics of the transport allows us to identify relevant relaxation times and mechanisms, which could enable engineering of faster ionic and neural systems.

       The study of nanofluidic ionic systems has primarily used monovalent ion systems.  However, divalent ions comprise some of the most important ion channels in biological systems.  We have investigated divalent nanofluidic ion transport, and have observed charge inversion at the channel/fluid interface.³ The observation of charge inversion has important implications to the theory of a strongly correlated liquid (SCL) and biological permselectivity.

       Finally, we will show some implications and applications. There are a number of naturally occurring systems which utilizes this physics for permselective ion transport, and engineered nanofluidic batteries. We observe an unexpected improvement of electrochemical performance in a nanofluidic battery, with important implications for increased energy storage.