  Our computer simulations have shown that the large-scale conformational
dynamics of a short oligomeric fragment of thermoresponsive polymers resemble
the mechanical movement of nonlinear bistable systems. The oligomers
demonstrate spontaneous vibrations and stochastic resonance activated by the
thermal noise. We have observed reasonable shifts of the spontaneous vibrations
and stochastic resonance modes when attaching a molecular cargo to the
oligomer. All these effects indicate that bistable oligomers may work as
operational units capable of detecting single molecules.
