Jean-Pierre Sauvage of the University of Strasbourg, France; Sir James Fraser Stoddart of Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois and Bernard Lucas Feringa of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016 "for the design and synthesis of molecular machines."
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the trio received the Nobel Prize for their design and production of molecular machines, and for developing molecules with controllable movements that perform a task when energy is added.
A Frenchman, Sauvage, 72, is an emeritus professor and coordination chemist working at the University of Strasbourg in Strasbourg, France. He specializes in supramolecular chemistry.
Stoddart, 74, is a Scottish chemist working in the area of supramolecular chemistry and nanotechnology. He's now with the Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University.
Another Scot, Feringa, 65, is a synthetic organic chemist, specializing in molecular nanotechnology and homogenous catalysis. He is the Jacobus Van't Hoff Distinguished Professor of Molecular Sciences at the Stratingh Institute for Chemistry, University of Groningen, Netherlands.
"The development of computing demonstrates how the miniaturization of technology can lead to a revolution. The 2016 Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have miniaturized machines and taken chemistry to a new dimension," said the academy.
It noted the first step towards a molecular machine was taken by Sauvage in 1983 when he succeeded in linking two ring-shaped molecules together to form a chain called a catenane.
Molecules are normally joined by strong covalent bonds in which the atoms share electrons, but in the chain they were instead linked by a freer mechanical bond. For a machine to be able to perform a task, it must consist of parts that can move relative to each other. The two interlocked rings exactly fulfilled this requirement.
The second step was taken by Stoddart in 1991 when he developed a rotaxane. He threaded a molecular ring onto a thin molecular axle and demonstrated the ring was able to move along the axle.
Among his developments based on rotaxanes are a molecular lift, a molecular muscle and a molecule-based computer chip.
Feringa was the first person to develop a molecular motor. In 1999 he got a molecular rotor blade to spin continually in the same direction. Using molecular motors, he has rotated a glass cylinder that is 10,000 times bigger than the motor and also designed a nanocar.
The academy said the Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have taken molecular systems out of equilibrium's stalemate and into energy-filled states in which their movements can be controlled.
In terms of development, the molecular motor is at the same stage as the electric motor was in the 1830s, when scientists displayed various spinning cranks and wheels, unaware that they would lead to electric trains, washing machines, fans and food processors.
Molecular machines will most likely be used in the development of things such as new materials, sensors and energy storage systems.