Bio-molecular motors are nature’s nano-machines that convert chemical energy into mechanical work with performance and scale unparalleled by any man-made motors or machines. The main goal of this program is to develop an understanding of the fundamental operating principles of bio-molecular motors and exploit this knowledge to harvest, modify, and integrate these macro-molecular assemblies into useful devices from the nano to macro scale. This goal will be accomplished through the exploration of single and multiple bio-molecular and bio-mimetic molecular motor assemblies. Ultimately, laboratory-scale devices based on bio-molecular motors will be fabricated and fully evaluated for performance, failure modes, and, applicability to DoD systems.
By the end of the program, DARPA expects to identify, fabricate, and evaluate several prototype or laboratory-scale devices and determine relative figures of merit based on performance and potential military impact. The exploitation of highly efficient bio-motors and tissues could lead to revolutionary systems with unparalleled performance for defense applications. These advancements would enable a whole new generation of hybrid biological/mechanical machines that efficiently actuate materials and fluids at many scales and could lead to new classes of sorting, sensing, energy harvesting and actuating devices.
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