Theoretical design for a light-driven molecular motor based on rotaxanes

Abstract

We suggest a design for a light-driven molecular motor, which is different from the existing designs. It is a rotaxane molecule, having identical 'stations' and an asymmetric 'shuttle'. We argue that the molecule would exhibit unidirectional rotational/translational motion continuously, upon shining with light of just one frequency. With this design, it should be possible to synthesizea light-driven single-molecular motor in the near future.