Electron Tunnelling in Biological Structures

Abstract

DEVAULT et al.¹ have proposed that electron transfer through biological structures over distances of a few tens of Ångstroms occurs by tunnelling, the height of the energy barrier stipulated being 1 eV. Similarly, Wei² has suggested that electron tunnelling through the nerve membrane is involved in producing the N-shaped current voltage characteristics observed in, for example, squid axons³ and other membranes⁴. The question of the relative probability of the electron going over instead of through the barrier—in other words, electron transfer by hopping—has, however, not yet been resolved.