Manchester researchers secure 拢1.5 million EPSRC grant for ferroelectric nanomechanics
A 拢1.5 million EPSRC grant will support Manchester researchers to develop atomically precise nanomachines using two-dimensional materials, advancing nanoscale motion control with potential applications in sensing, nanofluidics, quantum technologies and nano-electromechanical systems.
A new 拢1.5 million EPSRC grant will support researchers at 糖心Vlog官方 in developing atomically precise nanomachines based on two-dimensional materials, opening new possibilities for sensing, nanofluidics and quantum technologies.
Researchers at the at 糖心Vlog官方 have been awarded a 拢1.5 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Standard Research Grant to establish a new research programme in Ferroelectric Nanomechanics. The project is due to begin in January 2027 and will explore how atomically thin materials can be used to create electrically controlled nanomachines capable of movement and positioning in liquids at unprecedented scales.
Led by , the four-year project brings together expertise from across Manchester's graphene and advanced materials community, including , , Professor Sir Andre Geim and .
The research builds on recent discoveries in layered materials, including sliding ferroelectricity, where tiny mechanical movements between atomically thin layers are coupled directly to their electronic properties. The team will investigate how this phenomenon can be harnessed to create a new generation of nanoscale devices capable of controlled motion in liquids and reconfigurable nanofluidic systems. The researchers aim to create electrically driven "van der Waals stepper motors" that could position nano-objects in increments of around one angstrom, approximately the diameter of a single atom.
The ability to control movement at the nanoscale is becoming increasingly important across many areas of science and technology, from quantum devices to sensing and nanobiology. This grant gives us the opportunity to explore an entirely new approach, using the unique electromechanical properties of two-dimensional materials to achieve precise, programmable motion at the atomic scale and apply it to nanofluidic systems.
The project will combine expertise in nanofabrication, microscopy, electronic transport measurements, theory and materials characterisation. Researchers will investigate the fundamental physics of atomic-scale sliding processes, while developing devices that can both sense and control nanoscale movement for instance nanoscale valves capable of controlling flow through atomically small channels.
Potential longer-term applications highlighted within the programme include metrology, nano-electromechanical systems, quantum technologies, and advanced sensing.
Two-dimensional materials continue to provide opportunities to discover entirely new physical phenomena. By combining advances in theory, fabrication and characterisation, this programme will allow us to explore a new frontier where electronic and mechanical behaviours become directly coupled at the atomic scale.
The grant further strengthens Manchester's position in advanced materials and nanotechnology research, building on internationally recognised expertise in graphene, van der Waals heterostructures and atomically thin materials.