Charge Transport in a Protein-Ligand Complex: A Preliminary Quantum Statistical Model

Experiments show that protein-ligand binding activates long-range charge transport with a nanosiemens conductance over nanometer scales in the linear response regime (cf. Ohm’s law superimposed with telegraph noise observed in 2019). Inspired by these observations, we investigate charge transport of a 1D-semiconductor at nanoscales, from first principles of quantum mechanics only. The charge carriers are fermionic (like electrons) and do not interact with each other, but can move (quasi-)freely in two interconnected 1D (nanometric) lattices, only one of which is conductive. Electric currents and their quantum fluctuations under the influence of numerous parameters such as voltage, temperature, length, etc. are computed and discussed, having in mind bioelectronics, in particular emergent laws in protein complexes.