Sun nanomotor

Sunlight prompts a newly developed molecular nanomotor to unclasp in this artist’s illustration. In a paper expected to appear soon in the online edition of the journal Nano Letters, a team of researchers from the University of Florida reports building a new type of “molecular nanomotor” driven only by photons, or particles of light. While it is not the first photon-driven nanomotor, the almost infinitesimal device is the first built entirely with a single molecule of DNA – giving it a simplicity that increases its potential for development, manufacture and real-world applications in areas ranging from medicine to manufacturing, the scientists say.

(Yan Chen/University of Florida)
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