Garcia-Garibay Miguel A
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Aug 2;102(31):10771-6. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0502816102. Epub 2005 Jul 26.
Crystalline molecular machines represent an exciting new branch of crystal engineering and materials science with important implications to nanotechnology. Crystalline molecular machines are crystals built with molecules that are structurally programmed to respond collectively to mechanic, electric, magnetic, or photonic stimuli to fulfill specific functions. One of the main challenges in their construction derives from the picometric precision required for their mechanic operation within the close-packed, self-assembled environment of crystalline solids. In this article, we outline some of the general guidelines for their design and apply them for the construction of molecular crystals with units intended to emulate macroscopic gyroscopes and compasses. Recent advances in the preparation, crystallization, and dynamic characterization of these interesting systems offer a foothold to the possibilities and help highlight some avenues for future experimentation.
晶体分子机器代表了晶体工程和材料科学中一个令人兴奋的新分支，对纳米技术具有重要意义。晶体分子机器是由分子构建而成的晶体，这些分子在结构上经过编程，能够对机械、电、磁或光子刺激做出集体响应，以实现特定功能。其构建过程中的主要挑战之一源于在晶体固体紧密堆积的自组装环境中进行机械操作所需的皮米级精度。在本文中，我们概述了其设计的一些通用准则，并将其应用于构建旨在模拟宏观陀螺仪和指南针的分子晶体。这些有趣系统在制备、结晶和动态表征方面的最新进展为各种可能性提供了立足点，并有助于突出一些未来实验的途径。
