Beyond nanopore sizing: improving solid-state single-molecule sensing performance, lifetime, and analyte scope for omics by targeting surface chemistry during fabrication

Solid-state nanopores (SSNs) are single-molecule resolution sensors with a growing footprint in real-time bio-polymer profiling-most prominently, but far from exclusively, DNA sequencing. SSNs accessibility has increased with the advent of controlled dielectric breakdown (CDB), but severe fundamental challenges remain: drifts in open-pore current and (irreversible) analyte sticking. These behaviors impede basic research and device development for commercial applications and can be dramatically exacerbated by the chemical complexity and physical property diversity of different analytes. We demonstrate a SSN fabrication approach attentive to nanopore surface chemistry during pore formation, and thus create nanopores in silicon nitride (SiNx) capable of sensing a wide analyte scope-nucleic acid (double-stranded DNA), protein (holo-human serum transferrin) and glycan (maltodextrin). In contrast to SiNx pores fabricated without this comprehensive approach, the pores are Ohmic in electrolyte, have extremely stable open-pore current during analyte translocation (>1 h) over a broad range of pore diameters (less than or similar to