As part of an effort aimed at controlling matter at the nanoscale, BSU researchers have created a molecule-sized Boise State logo using DNA. The team, led by Elton Graugnard, programmed a long loop of single-stranded DNA to “fold” into the shape of the B logo using 170 short, complementary DNA “staples”. Roughly one trillion identical logos were produced in 4 hours. The synthesis was verified with a Bruker MultiMode 8 atomic force microscope in the Surface Science Laboratory. The results demonstrate the ability to program DNA to form arbitrary shapes with extreme precision. Such DNA structures are being developed in Boise State’s Nanoscale Materials and Device Group as novel materials for building future electronic and optical computer circuits from molecules.
Although molecular circuits still have a long way to go before they are used in commercial products, semiconductor companies like Micron Technology are currently looking at ways to make new computer chips using the programmable nature of DNA. In a related effort, a research team at Boise State led by Will Hughes, Associate Professor in MSE, was recently awarded a $1.5M grant from the National Science Foundation to develop the knowledge necessary to make manufacturing with DNA a reality.