Distinct functional elements for outer-surface anti-interference and inner-wall ion gating of nanochannels

Over the decades, widespread advances have been achieved on nanochannels, including nanochannel-based DNA sequencing, single-molecule detection, smart sensors, and energy transfer and storage. However, most interest has been focused on the contribution from the functional elements (FEs) at the inner wall (IW) of nanochannels, whereas little attention has been paid to the contribution from the FEs at the nanochannels’ outer surface (OS). Herein, we achieve explicit partition of FE(OS) and FE(IW) based on accurate regional-modification of OS and IW. The FE(IW) are served for ionic gating, and the chosen FE(OS) (hydrophobic or charged) are served for blocking interference molecules into the nanochannels, decreasing the false signals for the ionic gating in complex environments. Furthermore, we define a composite factor, areas of a radar map, to evaluate the FE(OS) performance for blocking interference molecules.