lightdriven

Rotary molecular motors were first created in 1999, in the laboratory of Ben Feringa, Professor of Organic Chemistry at the University of Groningen. These motors are driven by light. For many reasons, it would be good to be able to make…

Scientists at the LMU and the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (MPQ) have used ultrashort laser pulses to make the atoms of molecules vibrate and have gained a precise understanding of the dynamics of energy transfer that take place…

Propelling micrometre-sized drones using light only and exerting precise control: Physicists at the University of Würzburg have succeeded at this for the first time. Their microdrones are significantly smaller than red blood cells. A…

For the first time, a molecular movie has captured in detail the process of an anion transported across the cell membrane by a light-fuelled protein pump. Publishing in Science, the researchers have unravelled the mystery of how light…

Recycling carbon dioxide (CO2), especially through conversion to methane (CH4), is compelling while anthropogenic CO2 emissions are still rising. A useful process for this transformation is photothermal methanation, in which CO2 and…