Self-propelled nanomotors are developed by a group of Scientists. The new product is inspired by our body’s immune system which can find seek out and repair tiny scratches. This invention would be leading to self-healing gadgets. Jinxing Li, a PhD candidate at the University of California at San Diego states that we generally have very sophisticated Electronic circuits nowadays but even a small crack can interrupt the flow of current which could eventually lead to the failure of the device. He also says that repairing advanced electronics on a nanoscale requires innovation unlike traditional electronics which can be fixed with soldering. According to him Gadgets will soon be more ubiquitous than ever and may start appearing in our clothes, implants and accessories.
It is still a challenge to find ways to fix nanocircuits, battery electrodes or other electronic components in the case they break. Researchers say that Replacing whole devices or even parts can be expensive or tricky particularly in those cases where they are located in remote places like being integrated in clothes. Joseph Wang from UC San Diego says that creating devices that can fix themselves would be ideal. When a person cuts his finger, platelets automatically find out the wound location and help to start the healing process. So the target was to create an extremely small robot which performs a similar function, except in the case of an electronics system. Researchers have designed and built, hydrogen peroxide powered nanoparticles that is made of gold and platinum. The platinum propels the particles by spurring the fuel to break down into water and oxygen.
When the nanomotors were zoomed over the surface of a broken electronic circuit, that they connected to a light-emitting diode. As the scratch was found, it was lodged in it and it bridged the gap between the two sides. As the particles were made up of conductive metals, the current flow started, and the LED lit up.