This text focuses on new results in molecular motors, self-assembly, and single-molecule manipulation that have revolutionized the field in recent years, and integrates these topics with classical results. The text also provides foundational material for the emerging field of nanotechnology. Now in paperback, this updated edition has new end-of-chapter problems giving fresh options for assignments and exams; and an updated Chapter on Enzymes and Molecular Machines, for a thoroughly up-to-date look at our rapidly evolving understanding of molecular motors.

Philip Nelson is Professor of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his A.B. from Princeton University (1980) and Ph.D. from Harvard University (1984). Dr. Nelson serves on the Biophysical Society’s Education Committee; he received Penn’s highest teaching award in 2001, in part for creating the course that formed the basis for this book. Dr. Nelson was recently elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society.