Electric cars 1 molecule

This nano-sized car is a step forward in creating advanced machines that can handle tasks like going through veins to destroy cancer cells.

Unable to plug into the regular grid, but this electric car possesses an impressive 'certificate' : it is the smallest vehicle in the world by being made of a 1-billionth molecule. of 1 meter, which is 60,000 times smaller than the thickness of a human hair.

Nano car

According to Discovery , unlike previous nano cars that are supported by scanning microscopes, light or heat, this molecular car uses electrons to travel . 'This is the first example of what actually has motor functionality. You can charge energy to have a propulsion mechanism like a real motor in a car , 'said Ben Feringa, professor of organic chemistry at the University of Groningen (Netherlands) and the chair of the team to build the New nano cars said.

Previously, Feringa experts studied the design of molecular motors operating like artificial windmills. To create a new nano car, he and his colleagues attached four motors to a synthetic molecule. These motors will act as pedal wheels that, when excited, can propel the system on a copper surface. Electrons fired at this tiny vehicle can change the shape of the rotor, causing them to move forward on the distance by a fraction of the nanometer. The motors are individually controlled so the navigation capability is similar to rotating the steering wheel on a large car.

Dutch experts must work at a negative temperature of 266 degrees Celsius in a vacuum so that the molecules stand still until activated, similar to winning a car so that the real car won't slip down when parked. Mr. Feringa admits that controlling movement in the nano world is very difficult and this movement 'is very different from what happens in the larger world'. Gravity and mass do not keep a molecular vehicle lying on the floor like with a real-sized car. 'There is great encouragement to develop motors that can eventually provide energy to perform all the functions at the nanoscale' , he said.

Feringa expert confirmed that his achievement, albeit small, was a fundamental step to creating truly advanced nanomachines, allowing this molecular car to operate under normal conditions and move on longer distances.