An acetylcholine receptor (green) forms a gated ion channel in the plasma membrane. This receptor is a membrane protein with an aqueous pore, meaning it allows soluble materials to travel across the ...

Researchers at Leipzig University and TU Dresden have succeeded in developing biological switches that can selectively turn ion channels on and off using light pulses. Initial applications show that ...

Very unusual atomic states are being produced: Ions are created by removing not just one but 20 to 40 electrons from each atom. These 'highly charged ions' play an important role in current research.

A research group shows, using computer simulations, that ions do not always behave as expected. In their research on molten salts, they were able to see that, in some cases, the ions in the salt ...