Itinerant electron model and conductance of DNA

DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) has recently caught the attention of chemists and physicists. A major reason for this interest is DNA’s potential use in nanoelectronic devices, both as a template for assembling nanocircuits and as an element of such circuits. However, the electronic properties of the DN...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers of physics in China 2008-09, Vol.3 (3), p.349-364
Main Authors: Qu, Zhen, Kang, Da-wei, Gao, Xu-tuan, Xie, Shi-jie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astronomy
Astrophysics and Cosmology
Atomic
Condensed Matter Physics
Molecular
Optical and Plasma Physics
Particle and Nuclear Physics
Physics
Physics and Astronomy
Review Article
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) has recently caught the attention of chemists and physicists. A major reason for this interest is DNA’s potential use in nanoelectronic devices, both as a template for assembling nanocircuits and as an element of such circuits. However, the electronic properties of the DNA molecule remain very controversial. Charge-transfer reactions and conductivity measurements show a large variety of possible electronic behavior, ranging from Anderson and band-gap insulators to effective molecular wires and induced superconductors. In this review article, we summarize the wide-ranging experimental and theoretical results of charge transport in DNA. An itinerant electron model is suggested and the effect of the density of itinerant electrons on the conductivity of DNA is studied. Calculations show that a DNA molecule may show conductivity from insulating to metallic, which explains the controversial and profuse electric characteristics of DNA to some extent.
ISSN:1673-3487
1673-3606
DOI:10.1007/s11467-008-0029-8