Patent ID: 8293083

Claim:
A nanopore membrane, comprising: a membrane having a thickness, with a first, exterior, side and a second, interior, side, with the first side being opposite the second side, wherein the membrane is made from a material selected from the group consisting of glass, Si, SiO 2 , Si 3 N 4 , quartz, alumina, nitrides, metals and polymers; and a nanopore extending through the membrane, thus forming a channel connecting from the first side to the second side of the membrane, wherein the nanopore has a first opening that opens to the first side of the membrane, a second opening that opens to the second side of the membrane and a depth, wherein the surface properties of at least one of: the first side of the membrane; the second side of the membrane; and the channel connecting the first side to the second side of the membrane are modified to change at least one of an electrical charge density, hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity property thereof, with the first side of the membrane being modified with a first entity, and the channel connecting the first side to the second side of the membrane being modified with a second entity which is different from the first entity.