Mechanical Control of Nanomaterials and Nanosystems

TLDR

Mechanical control of nanomaterials and nanosystems has historically been difficult, but recent advances have made it a hot research area, especially as manual mechanical stimuli remain a reliable power source during outages. This report reviews recent studies on mechanically controlling nanomaterials and nanosystems, focusing on macroscopic mechanical stimuli applied to molecular systems and advanced strategies for microdevice fabrication and molecular machines. The authors describe how macroscopic mechanical outputs arise from accumulated molecular‑level effects, categorizing research into molecular structure, orientation, interaction, and biological phenomena, and highlighting approaches for microdevice fabrication and molecular machine control. Because mechanical forces are reliable and broadly applicable, mechanically responsive nanomaterials and nanosystems are expected to significantly improve lifestyles and stabilize society.

Abstract

Abstract In situations of power outage or shortage, such as periods just following a seismic disaster, the only reliable power source available is the most fundamental of forces i.e., manual mechanical stimuli. Although there are many macroscopic mechanical tools, mechanical control of nanomaterials and nanosystems has not been an easy subject to develop even by using advanced nanotechnological concepts. However, this challenge has now become a hot topic and many new ideas and strategies have been proposed recently. This report summarizes recent research examples of mechanical control of nanomaterials and nanosystems. Creation of macroscopic mechanical outputs by efficient accumulation of molecular‐level phenomena is first briefly introduced. We will then introduce the main subject: control of molecular systems by macroscopic mechanical stimuli. The research described is categorized according to the respective areas of mechanical control of molecular structure, molecular orientation, molecular interaction including cleavage and healing, and biological and micron‐level phenomena. Finally, we will introduce two more advanced approaches, namely, mechanical strategies for microdevice fabrication and mechanical control of molecular machines. As mechanical forces are much more reliable and widely applicable than other stimuli, we believe that development of mechanically responsive nanomaterials and nanosystems will make a significant contribution to fundamental improvements in our lifestyles and help to maintain and stabilize our society.