SURFACE SCIENCE: How to Power a Nanomotor.
A successful nanotechnology will require nanomotors that can perform functions from switches to pumps and actuators. In their Perspective, Besenbacher and Nørskov discuss the study by Schmid et al., who show that tin islands on a copper surfaces propel themselves forward on the surface, drawing energy from alloy formation with the surface below. The system has about the same power-to-weight ratio as a car and may provide a paradigm for future nanomotors.
Besenbacher
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Nørskov
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