US Patent 7915973 - Tunable multiwalled nanotube resonator

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7915973.html

Nanoscale resonators have the potential to weigh single bacteria, detect single spins in magnetic resonance systems, and probe quantum mechanical phenomena. Silicon microstructructures can be used to create such resonators but are difficult to scale to nanometer dimensions. This patent is from the Regents of the University of California and teaches a way to produce a nanoresonator with multiwall carbon nanotubes. Claim 1 reads:

1. A tunable resonator, comprising:

a) an extendable multiwalled nanotube having two ends; and

b) an extension means attached to the two ends of the extendable multiwalled nanotube;

c) whereby the extension means relatively displaces the two ends of the attached extendable multiwalled nanotube.