Researchers at The University of Manchester have secured a £1.5 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council grant to launch a four-year programme on ferroelectric nanomechanics. Starting in January 2027, the project will study how atomically thin materials can be used to build electrically controlled nanomachines that move and position matter at atomic scales.
Key facts
- The funding comes from an EPSRC Standard Research Grant worth £1.5 million.
- The work will be led from the National Graphene Institute at The University of Manchester.
- The project is scheduled to begin in January 2027 and run for four years.
- The research will explore electrically driven motion in two-dimensional materials, including possible uses in sensing and nanofluidics.
- The team says the programme could also inform quantum technologies, nano-electromechanical systems and metrology.
What does this mean for students and researchers?
The grant strengthens Manchester’s advanced materials and nanotechnology research base, which can matter for postgraduate researchers, collaborators and students working around the National Graphene Institute. The project will bring together expertise in nanofabrication, microscopy, electronic transport measurements, theory and materials characterisation, creating a multi-disciplinary research programme around atomically thin materials.
For researchers interested in the field, the practical significance is that the programme will focus on how sliding ferroelectricity can be used to create controlled motion in liquids and reconfigurable nanofluidic systems. The team also plans to investigate device concepts such as nanoscale valves and electrically driven “van der Waals stepper motors” that could position nano-objects in increments of around one angstrom.
- Who is affected: researchers at Manchester and others working in advanced materials, nanotechnology and related disciplines.
- When: the project starts in January 2027.
- Where: National Graphene Institute, The University of Manchester.
- What to watch: development of atomically precise devices and nanofluidic systems.
Why are atomically precise nanomachines important?
They matter because controlling movement at the nanoscale is increasingly important in areas such as sensing, nanobiology and quantum devices. Manchester’s project is aimed at understanding the fundamental physics of atomic-scale sliding processes and turning that knowledge into devices that can both sense and control nanoscale movement.
The researchers say the programme builds on discoveries in layered materials, including sliding ferroelectricity, where tiny mechanical movements between atomically thin layers are linked directly to electronic properties. That coupling is the scientific basis for the new work.
What will the research try to build?
The programme will investigate how to use two-dimensional materials to create nanomachines that can be electrically controlled in liquids. It will also explore whether those materials can be turned into reconfigurable nanofluidic systems and devices that perform precise motion control at the atomic scale.
Among the concepts highlighted by the team are nanoscale valves for controlling flow through atomically small channels and a new class of electrically driven “van der Waals stepper motors”.
Who is involved in the project?
The grant is led by Professor Roman Gorbachev. It also brings together Professor Vladimir Fal’ko, Professor Sarah Haigh, Professor Sir Andre Geim and Dr Nicholas Clark, combining expertise across Manchester’s graphene and advanced materials community.
According to the university, the funding further strengthens Manchester’s position in advanced materials and nanotechnology research, building on its existing work in graphene, van der Waals heterostructures and atomically thin materials.
