Ionic current rectification under concentration gradients and its application in evaluating surface charge properties of micropores

Ionic current rectification (ICR) induced by electroosmotic flow (EOF) under concentration gradients can find many applications in micro/nanofluidic sensing and ionic circuits. Here, we focused on the cases with micropores of moderate length–diameter ratios. Through experimental research and systematic simulations, the EOF-induced ICR was found to exhibit voltage-dependent ratios. In the considered cases with a weak EOF or strong ionic diffusion, a large deviation appears between the ion concentration inside the micropore and the bulk value, which fails the prediction by solution conductivity gradients. Based on our simulation results, effective equations were developed for the theoretical description of ion concentration distributions along the micropore axis under a coupled concentration gradient and electric field. With the predicted ion distributions inside micropores, the ICR ratio can be conveniently calculated using the derived electrical resistance of the microfluidic system, which applies to micropores of 200–1000 nm in diameter. Because the surface charge density is the only unknown input parameter, our developed equations can be used to evaluate the surface charge density of micropores using the measured EOF-induced ICR ratio under concentration gradients.