Tufts University chemists have announced the development of the world's first single-molecule electric motor — a mind-boggling concept in and of itself, but even more so when you take a look at the hard numbers. The new motor measures a mere 1 nanometer across — 200X smaller than the current world record for smallest electric motor (200 nanometers), and 60,000X smaller than the width of a single strand of human hair. This represents the first time an electrically driven molecular motor has been successfully demonstrated.
The research team was able to control the molecular motor with electricity by using a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope (LT-STM). The scientists still need to refine the temperatures at which the electric molecular motors operate, but they have high hopes for its potential to advance practical applications, ranging from medical devices to cell phones.
"Once we have a better grasp on the temperature necessary to make these motors function, there could be real-world application in some sensing and medical devices which involve tiny pipes. Friction of the fluid against the pipe walls increases at these small scales, and covering the wall with motors that could help drive fluids along," said E. Charles H. Sykes, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry who led the research.
More From SAE Media Group
Medical Design Briefs INSIDER
New Material Paves Way for Remote-Controlled Medication
Medical Design Briefs
Atomic Chains in Nanotubes Push the Electronics Frontier
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
Researchers Wire Up Individual Graphene Nanoribbons
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
3D Printing of Organic Electronics
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
Graphene Boosts Flexible and Wearable Electronics Boosts
Motion Design
3D-Printed Micro-Robots Hold Promise for Drug Delivery
Photonics & Imaging Technology
Individual Quantum Dots Imaged in 3-D for the First Time
Medical Design Briefs
Inkjet Printing Shows Promise for Making E-Textiles
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
Making Cheaper Biocompatible E-Skin Electrodes
Medical Design Briefs
Improved Polymer Electrode for Electronic Skin
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
New Wearable Sensor Makes Continuous Analysis of Sweat Possible
Tech Briefs
Smart Molecules Act as Computer Transistors
Tech Briefs
5 Ws of Invisible Glass
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
Piezoelectric Polymers
Tech Briefs
Rolled 2D Heterostructures
Electronics & Sensors INSIDER
A New Kind of Transistor — A Conductive Polymer
Tech Briefs TV
New Sensing System Turns Almost Anything Into Touchscreen
Photonics & Imaging Technology
Imaging Flexible DNA ‘Building Blocks’ in 3-D
