An MCBJ case study: The influence of π-conjugation on the single-molecule conductance at a solid/liquid interface

π-Conjugation plays an important role in charge transport through single molecular junctions. We describe in this paper the construction of a mechanically controlled break-junction setup (MCBJ) equipped with a highly sensitive log I-V converter in order to measure ultralow conductances of molecular...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Beilstein journal of nanotechnology 2011-10, Vol.2 (1), p.699-713
Main Authors: Hong, Wenjing, Valkenier, Hennie, Mészáros, Gábor, Manrique, David Zsolt, Mishchenko, Artem, Putz, Alexander, García, Pavel Moreno, Lambert, Colin J, Hummelen, Jan C, Wandlowski, Thomas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
anthraquinone
Full Research Paper
mechanically controlled break junction
Nanoscience
Nanotechnology
single-molecule conductance
π-conjugation
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Summary:π-Conjugation plays an important role in charge transport through single molecular junctions. We describe in this paper the construction of a mechanically controlled break-junction setup (MCBJ) equipped with a highly sensitive log I-V converter in order to measure ultralow conductances of molecular rods trapped between two gold leads. The current resolution of the setup reaches down to 10 fA. We report single-molecule conductance measurements of an anthracene-based linearly conjugated molecule (AC), of an anthraquinone-based cross-conjugated molecule (AQ), and of a dihydroanthracene-based molecule (AH) with a broken conjugation. The quantitative analysis of complementary current-distance and current-voltage measurements revealed details of the influence of π-conjugation on the single-molecule conductance.
ISSN:2190-4286
2190-4286
DOI:10.3762/bjnano.2.76