Gating of Water Flow Induced by Bending of a Carbon Nanotube

The ON-OFF state transition of the water transport induced by the structural bending of a carbon nanotube is studied by molecule dynamics simulation. The water permeation through a bent carbon nanotube shows excellent gating property with a threshold bending angle of about 14.6°. We also investigate the water density distribution inside the nanochannel to illustrate the mechanism.