Nature has engineered exquisitely responsive systems where molecular-scale information is transferred across an interface and propagated over long length scales. Such systems rely on multiple interacting, signalling and adaptable molecular and supramolecular networks that are built on dynamic, non-equilibrium structures. Comparable synthetic systems are still in their infancy. Here, we demonstrate that the light-induced actuation of a molecularly thin interfacial layer, assembled from a hydrophilic-azobenzene-hydrophobic diblock copolymer, can result in a reversible, long-lived perturbation of a robust glassy membrane across a range of over 500 chemical bonds. We show that the out-of-equilibrium actuation is caused by the photochemical trans–cis isomerization of the azo group, a single chemical functionality, in the middle of the interfacial layer. The principles proposed here are implemented in water-dispersed nanocapsules, and have implications for on-demand release of embedded cargo molecules.

大自然设计了精美的响应系统，其中分子级信息通过界面传输并在长距离尺度上传播。这样的系统依赖于建立在动态，非平衡结构上的多种相互作用，信号传递和适应性分子和超分子网络。可比的合成系统仍处于起步阶段。在这里，我们证明了由亲水性-偶氮苯-疏水性二嵌段共聚物组装而成的分子薄界面层的光诱导驱动，可导致在超过500种化学物质范围内，坚固的玻璃膜具有可逆的，长期的扰动债券。我们表明，不平衡驱动是由光化学反式引起的在界面层的中间，偶氮基团的异构化是一种单一的化学官能团。本文提出的原理在水分散的纳米胶囊中实施，并且对嵌入式货物分子的按需释放具有影响。