Molecular-Scale “Arm” is Huge –Or Rather, Tiny– Reach Forward in Nanotech
University of Manchester researchers have created the world’s first molecular robot, a tiny robotic arm that can manipulate single molecules and pave the way for advances in nano-robotics that could reshape manufacturing and medicine from the smallest scale up. More from phys.org:
Scientists at The University of Manchester have created the world’s first ‘molecular robot’ that is capable of performing basic tasks including building other molecules.
The tiny robots, which are a millionth of a millimetre in size, can be programmed to move and build molecular cargo, using a tiny robotic arm.
Each individual robot is capable of manipulating a single molecule and is made up of just 150 carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen atoms. To put that size into context, a billion billion of these robots piled on top of each other would still only be the same size as a single grain of salt.
The robots operate by carrying out chemical reactions in special solutions which can then be controlled and programmed by scientists to perform the basic tasks.
In the future such robots could be used for medical purposes, advanced manufacturing processes and even building molecular factories and assembly lines. The research will be published in Nature on Thursday 21st September.
Read More: Scientists create world’s first ‘molecular robot’ capable of building molecules
