1
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Lawson B, Skipper HE, Kamenetska M. Phenol is a pH-activated linker to gold: a single molecule conductance study. NANOSCALE 2024; 16:2022-2029. [PMID: 38197186 DOI: 10.1039/d3nr05257e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
Single molecule conductance measurements typically rely on functional linker groups to anchor the molecule to the conductive electrodes through a donor-acceptor or covalent bond. While many linking moieties, such as thiols, amines, thiothers and phosphines have been used among others, very few involve oxygen binding directly to gold electrodes. Here, we report successful single molecule conductance measurements using hydroxy (OH)-containing phenol linkers and show that the molecule-gold attachment and electron transport are mediated by a direct O-Au bond. We find that deprotonation of the hydroxy moiety is necessary for metal-molecule binding to proceed, so that junction formation can be activated through pH control. Electronic structure and DFT+Σ transport calculations confirm our experimental findings that phenolate-terminated alkanes can anchor on the gold and show charge transport trends consistent with prior observations of alkane conductance with other linker groups. Critically, the deprotonated O--Au binding shows features similar to the thiolate-Au bond, but without the junction disruption caused by intercalation of sulfur into electrode tips often observed with thiol-terminated molecules. By comparing the conductance and binding features of O-Au and S-Au bonds, this study provides insight into the aspects of Au-linker bonding that promote reproducible and robust single molecule junction measurements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brent Lawson
- Department of Physics, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA.
| | - Hannah E Skipper
- Department of Chemistry, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
| | - Maria Kamenetska
- Department of Physics, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA.
- Department of Chemistry, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
- Division of Material Science and Engineering, Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
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2
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Zhou YF, Chang WY, Chen JZ, Huang JR, Fu JY, Zhang JN, Pei LQ, Wang YH, Jin S, Zhou XS. Substituent-mediated quantum interference toward a giant single-molecule conductance variation. NANOTECHNOLOGY 2021; 33:095201. [PMID: 34798622 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/ac3b84] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Quantum interference (QI) in single molecular junctions shows a promising perspective for realizing conceptual nanoelectronics. However, controlling and modulating the QI remains a big challenge. Herein, two-type substituents at different positions ofmeta-linked benzene, namely electron-donating methoxy (-OMe) and electron-withdrawing nitryl (-NO2), are designed and synthesized to investigate the substituent effects on QI. The calculated transmission coefficientsT(E) indicates that -OMe and -NO2could remove the antiresonance and destructive quantum interference (DQI)-induced transmission dips at position 2. -OMe could raise the antiresonance energy at position 4 while -NO2groups removes the DQI features. For substituents at position 5, both of them are nonactive for tuning QI. The conductance measurements by scanning tunneling microscopy break junction show a good agreement with the theoretical prediction. More than two order of magnitude single-molecule conductance on/off ratio could be achieved at the different positions of -NO2substituent groups at room temperature. The present work proves chemical substituents can be used for tuning QI features in single molecular junctions, which provides a feasible way toward realization of high-performance molecular devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Fan Zhou
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, People's Republic of China
| | - Wen-Yan Chang
- Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, People's Republic of China
| | - Jing-Zhe Chen
- Department of Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, People's Republic of China
| | - Jun-Ren Huang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, People's Republic of China
| | - Jia-Ying Fu
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, People's Republic of China
| | - Jin-Na Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, People's Republic of China
| | - Lin-Qi Pei
- Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, People's Republic of China
| | - Ya-Hao Wang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, People's Republic of China
| | - Shan Jin
- Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiao-Shun Zhou
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, People's Republic of China
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3
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Huang JR, Huang H, Tao CP, Zheng JF, Yuan Y, Hong ZW, Shao Y, Niu ZJ, Chen JZ, Zhou XS. Controlling Contact Configuration of Carboxylic Acid-Based Molecular Junctions Through Side Group. NANOSCALE RESEARCH LETTERS 2019; 14:253. [PMID: 31350621 PMCID: PMC6660542 DOI: 10.1186/s11671-019-3087-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, the contact configuration of single molecular junction is controlled through side group, which is explored by electrochemical jump-to-contact STM break junction. The conductance values of 2-methoxy-1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid (2-M-1,3-BDC) is around 10-3.65 G0, which is different from that of 5-methoxy-1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid (5-M-1,3-BDC) with 10-3.20 G0. Interestingly, the conductance value of 2-M-1,3-BDC is the same as that of 1,3-benzenedicarboxaldehyde (1,3-BDCA), while single molecular junctions of 5-M-1,3-BDC and 1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid (1,3-BDC) give out similar conductance value. Since 1,3-BDCA binds to the Cu electrode through one oxygen atom, the dominated contact configuration for 1,3-BDC is through two oxygen atoms. The different conductance values between 2-M-1,3-BDC and 5-M-1,3-BDC can be attributed to the different contact configurations caused by the position of the side group. The current work provides a feasible way to control the contact configuration between the anchoring group and the electrode, which may be useful in designing future molecular electronics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun-Ren Huang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Hong Huang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Cai-Ping Tao
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Ju-Fang Zheng
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Ying Yuan
- Department of Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, China
| | - Ze-Wen Hong
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China.
| | - Yong Shao
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Zhen-Jiang Niu
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Jing-Zhe Chen
- Department of Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, China.
- Zhejiang Tianyan Technology Co., Ltd, Hangzhou, 311215, China.
| | - Xiao-Shun Zhou
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China.
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4
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Huang B, Liu X, Yuan Y, Hong ZW, Zheng JF, Pei LQ, Shao Y, Li JF, Zhou XS, Chen JZ, Jin S, Mao BW. Controlling and Observing Sharp-Valleyed Quantum Interference Effect in Single Molecular Junctions. J Am Chem Soc 2018; 140:17685-17690. [DOI: 10.1021/jacs.8b10450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bing Huang
- Key Laboratory
of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute
of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Xu Liu
- Key Laboratory
of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Ying Yuan
- Department of Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
| | - Ze-Wen Hong
- Key Laboratory
of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute
of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Ju-Fang Zheng
- Key Laboratory
of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute
of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Lin-Qi Pei
- Key Laboratory
of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Yong Shao
- Key Laboratory
of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute
of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Jian-Feng Li
- State Key Laboratory
of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Department of Chemistry,
iChEM, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China
| | - Xiao-Shun Zhou
- Key Laboratory
of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute
of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Jing-Zhe Chen
- Department of Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
- Zhejiang Tianyan Technology Co., Ltd, Hangzhou 311215, China
| | - Shan Jin
- Key Laboratory
of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China
| | - Bing-Wei Mao
- State Key Laboratory
of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Department of Chemistry,
iChEM, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China
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5
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Peng LL, Chen F, Hong ZW, Zheng JF, Fillaud L, Yuan Y, Huang ML, Shao Y, Zhou XS, Chen JZ, Maisonhaute E. Precise tuning of single molecule conductance in an electrochemical environment. NANOSCALE 2018; 10:7026-7032. [PMID: 29611859 DOI: 10.1039/c8nr00625c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Tuning of molecular conductance in a liquid environment is a hot topic in molecular electronics. In this article, we explore a new concept where the Fermi level positions of the metallic ends are varied simply by modifying the electroactive salt concentration in solution. We rely on the electrochemical scanning tunneling microscope break junction method that allows the construction in solution of copper atomic contacts that can be then bridged by single molecules. The experimental conductance evolution is first confronted with an analytical formulation that allows the deduction of the molecule's LUMO position and electronic coupling factors. These parameters are in close agreement with those obtained by independent DFT calculations.
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Affiliation(s)
- L-L Peng
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang 321004, China.
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6
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Sangtarash S, Vezzoli A, Sadeghi H, Ferri N, O'Brien HM, Grace I, Bouffier L, Higgins SJ, Nichols RJ, Lambert CJ. Gateway state-mediated, long-range tunnelling in molecular wires. NANOSCALE 2018; 10:3060-3067. [PMID: 29376529 DOI: 10.1039/c7nr07243k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
If the factors controlling the decay in single-molecule electrical conductance G with molecular length L could be understood and controlled, then this would be a significant step forward in the design of high-conductance molecular wires. For a wide variety of molecules conducting by phase coherent tunnelling, conductance G decays with length following the relationship G = Ae-βL. It is widely accepted that the attenuation coefficient β is determined by the position of the Fermi energy of the electrodes relative to the energy of frontier orbitals of the molecular bridge, whereas the terminal anchor groups which bind to the molecule to the electrodes contribute to the pre-exponential factor A. We examine this premise for several series of molecules which contain a central conjugated moiety (phenyl, viologen or α-terthiophene) connected on either side to alkane chains of varying length, with each end terminated by thiol or thiomethyl anchor groups. In contrast with this expectation, we demonstrate both experimentally and theoretically that additional electronic states located on thiol anchor groups can significantly decrease the value of β, by giving rise to resonances close to EF through coupling to the bridge moiety. This interplay between the gateway states and their coupling to a central conjugated moiety in the molecular bridges creates a new design strategy for realising higher-transmission molecular wires by taking advantage of the electrode-molecule interface properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Sangtarash
- Quantum Technology Centre, Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YB, UK.
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7
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Borges A, Xia J, Liu SH, Venkataraman L, Solomon GC. The Role of Through-Space Interactions in Modulating Constructive and Destructive Interference Effects in Benzene. NANO LETTERS 2017; 17:4436-4442. [PMID: 28650176 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b01592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Quantum interference effects, whether constructive or destructive, are key to predicting and understanding the electrical conductance of single molecules. Here, through theory and experiment, we investigate a family of benzene-like molecules that exhibit both constructive and destructive interference effects arising due to more than one contact between the molecule and each electrode. In particular, we demonstrate that the π-system of meta-coupled benzene can exhibit constructive interference and its para-coupled analog can exhibit destructive interference, and vice versa, depending on the specific through-space interactions. As a peculiarity, this allows a meta-coupled benzene molecule to exhibit higher conductance than a para-coupled benzene. Our results provide design principles for molecular electronic components with high sensitivity to through-space interactions and demonstrate that increasing the number of contacts between the molecule and electrodes can both increase and decrease the conductance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Borges
- Department of Applied Physics, Columbia University , New York 10027, United States
- Nano-Science Center and Department of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen , 1017 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
| | - Jianlong Xia
- School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Life Science, Wuhan University of Technology , Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Sheng Hua Liu
- Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University , Wuhan, 430079, China
| | - Latha Venkataraman
- Department of Applied Physics and Department of Chemistry, Columbia University , New York 10027, United States
| | - Gemma C Solomon
- Nano-Science Center and Department of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen , 1017 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
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8
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Li WQ, Huang B, Huang ML, Peng LL, Hong ZW, Zheng JF, Chen WB, Li JF, Zhou XS. Detecting Electron Transport of Amino Acids by Using Conductance Measurement. SENSORS 2017; 17:s17040811. [PMID: 28394265 PMCID: PMC5422172 DOI: 10.3390/s17040811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2017] [Revised: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 04/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The single molecular conductance of amino acids was measured by a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) break junction. Conductance measurement of alanine gives out two conductance values at 10−1.85 G0 (1095 nS) and 10−3.7 G0 (15.5 nS), while similar conductance values are also observed for aspartic acid and glutamic acid, which have one more carboxylic acid group compared with alanine. This may show that the backbone of NH2–C–COOH is the primary means of electron transport in the molecular junction of aspartic acid and glutamic acid. However, NH2–C–COOH is not the primary means of electron transport in the methionine junction, which may be caused by the strong interaction of the Au–SMe (methyl sulfide) bond for the methionine junction. The current work reveals the important role of the anchoring group in the electron transport in different amino acids junctions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Qiong Li
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Bing Huang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Miao-Ling Huang
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Lin-Lu Peng
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Ze-Wen Hong
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Ju-Fang Zheng
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
| | - Wen-Bo Chen
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Materials Protection and Advanced Materials in Electric Power, Shanghai University of Electric Power, Shanghai 200090, China.
| | - Jian-Feng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China.
| | - Xiao-Shun Zhou
- Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China.
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