This thesis describes a novel approach to the fabrication and characterisation of metallic
nanopores and their application for the detection of single DNA molecules. Metallic
nanopores with apparent diameters below 20 nm are produced using electrochemical deposition
and real-time ionic current feedback. Beginning with large nanopores (diameter
100-200 nm) milled into gold silicon nitride membranes using a focused ion beam, platinum
metal is electrodeposited onto the gold surface, thus reducing the effective pore diameter.
By simultaneously observing the ion current feedback, the shrinking of the nanopore
can be monitored and terminated at any pre-defined value of the pore conductance in a
precisely controlled and reproducible way.
The ion transport properties of the metallic nanopore system are investigated by characterising
the pore conductance at varying potentials across the nanopore and concentrations
of electrolyte. The results are compared to conventional bare silicon nitride nanopore
systems. Chemical modification at the nanopore surface is also studied using thiolisation
to reduce the capacitive charging effects observed with metallic nanopores. Further to
this, impedance measurements are carried out to study the resistive behaviour exhibited
in these systems. An equivalent circuit model is proposed to validate the results obtained
from the experimental studies.
To evaluate the suitability of these nanopores for applications in single-molecule biosensing,
translocation experiments using λ-DNA are performed. DNA molecules are electrokinetically
driven through the nanopore under an applied electric field, hence as the DNA
translocates through the pore, current blockade events are detected. Each event is the
result of a single molecular interaction of DNA with the nanopore and is characterised
by its dwell time and amplitude. Characterisation studies and noise analysis towards
the applicability of metallic nanopores as single molecule detectors are also studied and
compared to current bare silicon nitride pore systems
