Identification of DNA Basepairing via Tunnel-Current Decay

We propose a new approach for reading the sequence of a DNA molecule passing between electrodes on a nanopore, using hydrogen bond-mediated tunneling signals. The base-electrode interaction is modeled using a nucleo-base-functionalized STM probe that is pulled away from a nucleoside monolayer. Watson−Crick recognition results in slow decay of the tunnel current, which is uniquely characteristic of the basepair in over half the reads. Thirteen independent reads would yield the desired 99.99% accuracy.