Light-driven molecular rotary motor

Filatov M (2013) Understanding the dynamics behind photoisomerization of light-driven molecular rotary motors. Comput Mol Sci 3 427... 

A. Kazaryan, Z. G. Lan, L. V. Schafer, M. Filatov, and W. Thiel. Surface hopping excited-state dynamics study of the photoisomerization of a light-driven fluorene molecular rotary motor, J. Chem. Theory Comput., 1 2189-2199 (2011). 

Light-driven unidirectional molecular rotary motors based on photoisomerization around a C=C bond51 have been successfully immobilized on nanoparticle gold surfaces by two thiol-functionalized legs to yield an azimuthal rotary motor (compound 1 in Fig. 17.2).52 Repetitive and unidirectional 360-degree rotary motion of the rotor moiety with respect to the surface-immobilized stator part was observed to occur on... 

Figure 17.2 A light-driven molecular azimuthal rotary motor immobilized on a nanoparticle gold surface.52 (Reprinted with permission from V. Balzani et al., ChemPhysChem 2008,9, 202-220. Copyright Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH Co. KGaA.)...

Molecular rotary motors are systems capable of undergoing unidirectional and repetitive rotations under the action of external energy inputs. The construction of molecular rotary motors poses several challenges, particularly because it is difficult to satisfy the unidirectional rotation requirement. Artificial rotary motors driven by light have been obtained by exploiting a-C=C-isomerization reaction in carefully designed overcrowded chiral alkenes. 

Anabaena sensory rhodopsin (ASR, Fig. 10.2) [15, 16]—and a class [17, 18] of synthetic light-driven rotary molecular motors developed from chiral overcrowded alkenes [19], As further discussed below, verifying this analogy may have positive implications for the future design and construction of synthetic molecular motors. 

Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin and Light-Driven Rotary Molecular Motors... 

PoUard MM, Klok M, Pijper D, Feringa BL (2007) Rate acceleration of light-driven rotary molecular motors. Adv Funct Mater 17 718-729... 

J. Vicario, M. Walko, A. Meetsma, B.L. Eeringa, Eine tuning of the rotary motion by stmctural modification in light-driven unidirectional molecular motors. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 128, 5127-5135 (2006)... 

Other types of rotary motors can be constructed using catenanes, that is, species minimally composed of two mechanically interlocked macrocycles. In appropriately designed systems, the rotation of one ring around the other can be achieved by external stimulation. If suitable control elements are introduced in the structure, such a rotation can be performed unidirectionally. This concept was cleverly realized with benzylic amide catenanes by exploiting the isomerization of fumaramide to maleamide caused by UV light. Chiral C=N compounds such as imines also fulfill the criteria of two-step light-driven unidirectional molecular... 

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