Highly Efficient Freestyle Magnetic Nanoswimmer.

The unique swimming strategies of natural microorganisms have inspired recent development of magnetic micro/nanorobots powered by artificial helical or flexible flagella. However, as artificial nanoswimmers with unique geometries are being developed, it is critical to explore new potential modes for kinetic optimization. For example, the freestyle stroke is the most efficient of the competitive swimming strokes for humans.

Swimming Microrobot Optical Nanoscopy.

Optical imaging plays a fundamental role in science and technology but is limited by the ability of lenses to resolve small features below the fundamental diffraction limit. A variety of nanophotonic devices, such as metamaterial superlenses and hyperlenses, as well as microsphere lenses, have been proposed recently for subdiffraction imaging. The implementation of these micro/nanostructured lenses as practical and efficient imaging approaches requires locomotive capabilities to probe specific sites and scan large areas.

Rocket Science at the Nanoscale.

Autonomous propulsion at the nanoscale represents one of the most challenging and demanding goals in nanotechnology. Over the past decade, numerous important advances in nanotechnology and material science have contributed to the creation of powerful self-propelled micro/nanomotors. In particular, micro- and nanoscale rockets (MNRs) offer impressive capabilities, including remarkable speeds, large cargo-towing forces, precise motion controls, and dynamic self-assembly, which have paved the way for designing multifunctional and intelligent nanoscale machines.

Self-Propelled Nanomotors Autonomously Seek and Repair Cracks.

Biological self-healing involves the autonomous localization of healing agents at the site of damage. Herein, we design and characterize a synthetic repair system where self-propelled nanomotors autonomously seek and localize at microscopic cracks and thus mimic salient features of biological wound healing. We demonstrate that these chemically powered catalytic nanomotors, composed of conductive Au/Pt spherical Janus particles, can autonomously detect and repair microscopic mechanical defects to restore the electrical conductivity of broken electronic pathways.

Vapor-Driven Propulsion of Catalytic Micromotors.

Chemically-powered micromotors offer exciting opportunities in diverse fields, including therapeutic delivery, environmental remediation, and nanoscale manufacturing. However, these nanovehicles require direct addition of high concentration of chemical fuel to the motor solution for their propulsion. We report the efficient vapor-powered propulsion of catalytic micromotors without direct addition of fuel to the micromotor solution.