Unidirectional molecular rotary motor with remotely switchable rotation direction

Area of Science:

• Molecular Engineering
• Nanotechnology
• Physical Chemistry

Background:

• Light-driven rotary motors enable nanoscale energy conversion but typically require chemical modification to alter rotation direction.
• Motor chirality is crucial for unidirectional rotation but is difficult to change post-synthesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and computationally investigate a novel molecular motor architecture (E-motor) with an electrically switchable operation direction.
• To demonstrate that motor chirality can be controlled remotely via an electric field pulse.

Main Methods:

• Quantum chemical calculations.
• Nonadiabatic molecular dynamics simulations.
• Design and analysis of a specific system (PFCN) for illustrating the E-motor concept.

Main Results:

• The proposed PFCN system exhibits characteristic photophysical properties of a molecular motor.
• PFCN chirality is tunable by altering the orientation of a covalently bound polar switching unit using an electric field.
• The motor's chirality is stable during operation in the absence of an external electric field.

Conclusions:

• The E-motor architecture offers a new paradigm for controlling nanoscale rotary motion.
• Remote, non-chemical switching of molecular motor directionality is achievable.
• This work paves the way for advanced applications in molecular machines and devices.