Mass and charge flow in nanopores: numerical simulation via mesoscale models

Nanofluidics, thanks to the recent progress in the f abrication of micro and nanode- vices, has become an intense research field. Confined fluids in nanoscale geometries exhibit physical behaviors that, in several cases, largely differ from macro scale dynamics. The crucial differences are: i) in nanoscale systems the usual mathematical description for continuum fluid dynamics (Navier- Stokes equation), often fails to reproduce the correct fluid dynamics behavior and ii) in a number of crucial applications the focus is on the motion of a single ma cromolecule. These occurrences natu- rally call for an atomistic description of the whole system, which however remains currently limited to relatively small systems (tens of nm simulated for hundre ds of ns). The simulation of the fluid mo- tion at nanoscale is here addressed via a recent developed me soscale approach. In particular the flow of an electrolyte through a nano channel is analyzed. The sys tem represent an experimentally well characterized solid-state nanopore employed for DNA and pr otein translocation. The simulations are aimed at estimating the effect of DNA translocation on ma ss and charge flow rate potentially shedding light on the molecular mechanism behind recent exp erimental observations