Computers of the future may have components that function based on the action of single molecules, according to a paper by researchers at Penn State and Rice University published in the June 22 edition of Science.

Conformational changes — which happen when molecules alter their arrangement by rotation of their atoms around a single bond, effectively changing shape by moving or turning — determine how and when that conductance switching occurs in those molecules.

Researchers determined that limiting conformational changes reduces switching between the “on” and “off” states. Next step: figuring out how to control switching.