One of the suggested methods for DNA sequencing (which is very rapid and cheap) is translocation of DNA through a nanopore. The idea is to extract information about the DNA sequencing by studying the interactions between different nuleotides on the DNA and the nanopore.

This talk is devoted to the physics of the DNA (coarse grained polymer) translocation through a nanopore. We investigate the dynamics of pore-driven and end-pulled polymer translocation using an analytical model and also by means of molecular dynamics simulations [1]. By explaining the translocation process through the iso-flux tension propagation (IFTP) theory, a scaling relation for the average translocation time will be derived analytically [1]. Then modified versions of the IFTP theory will be employed to investigate polymer translocation through a flickering nanopore under an alternating driving force [2], end-pulled polymer translocation process [3], and also semi-flexible polymer translocation through a nanopore [4].

[1] J S, T Ikonen and T Ala-Nissila, J Chem Phys 141, 214907, 2014 [2] J S, T Ikonen and T Ala-Nissila, J Chem Phys 143, 074905, 2015 [3] J S, B Ghosh, S Chaudhury and T Alal-Nissila, EPL 120, 38004, 2017 [4] J S, T Ikonen, H Mokkonen, T Ala-Nissila, S Carson and M Wanunu, Sci Rep 7, 7423, 2017