  The term single file (SF) dynamics refers to the motion of an assembly of
particles through a channel with cross-section comparable to the particles'
diameter. Single file diffusion (SFD) is then the diffusion of a tagged
particle in a \emph{single file}, i.e., under the condition that particle
passing is not allowed. SFD accounts for a large variety of processes in
nature, including diffusion of colloids in synthetic and natural-shaped
channels, biological motors along molecular chains, electrons in proteins and
liquid helium, ions through membrane, just to mention a few examples. Albeit
introduced in '65, over the last decade the classical notion of SF dynamics has
been generalized to account through a more realistic modeling of, among others,
particles properties, file geometry, particle-particle and channel-particles
interactions, thus paving the way to remarkable applications in, for example,
the technology of bio-integrated nanodevices. We then provide a comprehensive
review of the recent advances in the theory of SF dynamics and the ensuing
experimental realisations.
