Physicist Richard Feynman in his famous 1959 talk, "Plenty of Room at the Bottom," described the precise control at the atomic level promised by molecular machines of the future. More than 50 years later, synthetic molecular switches are a dime a dozen, but synthetically designed molecular machines are few and far between.
Northwestern University chemists recently teamed up with a University of Maine physicist to explore the question, "Can artificial molecular machines deliver on their promise?" Their provocative analysis provides a roadmap outlining future challenges that must be met before full realization of the extraordinary promise of synthetic molecular machines can be achieved.
The tutorial review will be published Nov. 25 by the journal Chemical Society Reviews.
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