Computers and water do not usually get along very well , however, a team of researchers from Stanford University (USA) has managed to develop a computer with a unique characteristic: bits of information are replaced by drops of water. Thus, the device, in addition to processing information, processes matter . The groundbreaking work has been published in the journal Nature Physics .
How does this peculiar water computer work? The small drops of water are manipulated in the same way in which the bits of information of a traditional computer are manipulated: the drops – imbued with magnetic nanoparticles – move through a circuit of several matrices of iron bars covered by glass . In the middle of these layers they introduced oil.
The nanoparticles make the water droplets sensitive to the magnetic fields of a kind of clock – as in electronic computers. The caveat is that this watch is made of metal coils that, while rotating, generate a magnetic field. Thus, the behavior of the drops is influenced by the magnetic field making all of them (being able to control millions of drops at the same time) move in perfect synchronization and the system works without errors. It can perform all kinds of calculations in which the presence of a drop of water symbolizes 1 and the absence of it symbolizes 0 in binary code.
As the water computer is considerably slower to perform calculations than a regular computer, its utilities were conceived with a broader horizon: processing matter as well as information . To do this, the researchers believe that each drop of water could contain chemicals with the ability to generate reactions in test tubes, allowing a work capacity in biology or chemistry laboratories with unprecedented performance.
“We already have digital computers to process the information. Our goal is not to compete with electronic computers or to operate word processors. Our goal is to build a whole new class of equipment that can precisely control and manipulate physical matter. Imagine if, when executing a series of calculations, not only the information is processed, but the physical matter is algorithmically manipulated as well. Well, we have made this possible at the mesoscale, ”says Manu Prakash, study leader.
