Molecular machine
A single molecule with parts that move when energy is added.
Chemists can build molecules whose parts slide, rotate or switch when given light, heat or chemical energy: rings that move along rods, and motors that spin one way. They won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and are still lab research.
Where it matters
Technologies we track
- Molecular machines and motorsStep 1 · LabChemists can build single molecules with parts that move relative to each other when energy is added: rings that slide along rods, and motors that spin in one direction.