Molecular motors are at the heart of cellular machinery, and they are involved in converting chemical and light energy inputs into efficient mechanical work. From a synthetic perspective, the most advanced molecular motors are rotators that are activated by light wherein a molecular subcomponent rotates unidirectionally around an axis. The mechanical work produced by arrays of molecular motors can be used to induce a macroscopic effect. Light activation offers advantages over biological chemically activated molecular motors because one can direct precise spatiotemporal inputs while conducting reactions in the gas phase, in solution and in vacuum, while generating no chemical byproducts or waste. In this review, we describe the origins of the first light-activated rotary motors and their modes of function, the structural modifications that led to newer motor designs with optimized rotary properties at variable activation wavelengths. Presented are molecular motor attachments to surfaces, their insertion into supramolecular structures and photomodulating materials, their use in catalysis, and their action in biological environments to produce exciting new prospects for biomedicine.

中文翻译：

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光活化有机分子电动机及其应用。

分子电动机是蜂窝机械的核心，它们参与将化学和光能输入转化为有效的机械功。从合成的角度来看，最先进的分子电动机是由光激活的转子，其中分子子组件绕轴单向旋转。由分子马达阵列产生的机械功可用于引起宏观效应。光活化提供了优于生物化学活化分子马达的优势，因为它可以在气相，溶液和真空中进行反应的同时，引导精确的时空输入，而不会产生化学副产物或废物。在这篇评论中，我们描述了第一批光激活旋转电机的起源及其功能模式，结构上的变化导致了新的电机设计，在可变的激活波长下具有优化的旋转特性。提出了分子马达附着在表面上，它们插入超分子结构和光调节材料，它们在催化中的应用以及它们在生物环境中的作用，从而为生物医学带来了令人兴奋的新前景。