REHOVOT, Israel, Jan. 24 (UPI) -- Israeli scientists say they've developed the world's first molecular lock with keypad inputs consisting of iron ions, acids, bases and ultraviolet light.
The researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science say they've created a molecule that can function as an ultra-miniaturized version of a keypad locking mechanism.
The molecule, synthesized in the lab of Professor Abraham Shanzer, is composed of two smaller linked units -- fluorescent probes -- separated by a molecular chain to which iron can bind. The researchers say one of the probes can shine bright fluorescent blue and the other fluorescent green, but only if the surrounding conditions are right. Those conditions are the keypad inputs and, rather than the electric pulses of an electronic keypad, they consist of iron ions, acids, bases, and ultraviolet light.
The research appears in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
