ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Molecular sensor

Imagine you have a magical nose that can smell everything in the world, even really tiny things that you can't see. A molecular sensor is kind of like that magical nose, but for scientists.

It's a special tool that helps scientists figure out what's in things, even if they're too small for our eyes to see or too complicated for us to understand just by looking.

Molecules are the tiny building blocks that make up everything around us, like the air we breathe, the water we drink, and even our own bodies. A molecular sensor can help scientists figure out what kinds of molecules are in a certain substance, which can be really helpful for things like medicine, chemistry, and even food safety.

The sensor works by using some kind of special material, like a tiny stick or a little machine, that can detect different types of molecules. When the molecules come into contact with the material, it sends a signal to a computer that tells the scientists what they're looking at.

So, in a nutshell, a molecular sensor is a tool that helps scientists sniff out and identify different types of molecules in the world around us.