Abstract This is a Small Grant for Exploratory Research (SGER) award. Dr. Eisenberg and his colleagues propose to use the methods of semiconductor science to analyze electric current flow through ionic channels of known three dimensional structure in biological systems. Ionic channels are protein molecules found in all living cells and are of great technological and scientific importance to both fundamental understanding of biology as well as practical application of biological principles for product development in the fields of health, energy, and environment . This research is based on the concept that the mathematical models used to describe the properties of ionic channels and semiconductors are nearly the same. This project is designed to test that concept.
