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Single-Molecule Chemical Reactions Unveiled in Molecular Junctions. Processes (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/pr10122574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding chemical processes at the single-molecule scale represents the ultimate limit of analytical chemistry. Single-molecule detection techniques allow one to reveal the detailed dynamics and kinetics of a chemical reaction with unprecedented accuracy. It has also enabled the discoveries of new reaction pathways or intermediates/transition states that are inaccessible in conventional ensemble experiments, which is critical to elucidating their intrinsic mechanisms. Thanks to the rapid development of single-molecule junction (SMJ) techniques, detecting chemical reactions via monitoring the electrical current through single molecules has received an increasing amount of attention and has witnessed tremendous advances in recent years. Research efforts in this direction have opened a new route for probing chemical and physical processes with single-molecule precision. This review presents detailed advancements in probing single-molecule chemical reactions using SMJ techniques. We specifically highlight recent progress in investigating electric-field-driven reactions, reaction dynamics and kinetics, host–guest interactions, and redox reactions of different molecular systems. Finally, we discuss the potential of single-molecule detection using SMJs across various future applications.
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Zimbovskaya NA, Nitzan A. Energy, Work, Entropy, and Heat Balance in Marcus Molecular Junctions. J Phys Chem B 2020; 124:2632-2642. [PMID: 32163712 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c00059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We present a consistent theory of energy balance and conversion in a single-molecule junction with strong interactions between electrons on the molecular linker (dot) and phonons in the nuclear environment where the Marcus-type electron hopping processes predominate in the electron transport. It is shown that the environmental reorganization and relaxation that accompany electron hopping energy exchange between the electrodes and the nuclear (molecular and solvent) environment may bring a moderate local cooling of the latter in biased systems. The effect of a periodically driven dot level on the heat transport and power generated in the system is analyzed, and energy conservation is demonstrated both within and beyond the quasistatic regime. Finally, a simple model of atomic scale engine based on a Marcus single-molecule junction with a driven electron level is suggested and discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalya A Zimbovskaya
- Department of Physics and Electronics, University of Puerto Rico-Humacao, CUH Station, Humacao, Puerto Rico 00791, United States
| | - Abraham Nitzan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States.,School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
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Osorio HM, Catarelli S, Cea P, Gluyas JBG, Hartl F, Higgins SJ, Leary E, Low PJ, Martín S, Nichols RJ, Tory J, Ulstrup J, Vezzoli A, Milan DC, Zeng Q. Electrochemical Single-Molecule Transistors with Optimized Gate Coupling. J Am Chem Soc 2015; 137:14319-28. [DOI: 10.1021/jacs.5b08431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Henrry M. Osorio
- Departamento
de Química Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Samantha Catarelli
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Pilar Cea
- Departamento
de Química Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain
- Instituto
de Nanociencia de Aragón (INA) and Laboratorio de microscopias
avanzadas (LMA), edificio i+d Campus Rio Ebro, Universidad de Zaragoza, C/Mariano Esquillor, s/n, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Josef B. G. Gluyas
- School
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley 6009, Australia
| | - František Hartl
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AD, U.K
| | - Simon J. Higgins
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Edmund Leary
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Paul J. Low
- School
of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley 6009, Australia
| | - Santiago Martín
- Departamento
de Química Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain
- Instituto
de Ciencias de Materiales de Aragón (ICMA), Universidad de Zaragoza-CSIC, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Richard J. Nichols
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Joanne Tory
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AD, U.K
| | - Jens Ulstrup
- Department
of Chemistry and NanoDTU, Technical University of Denmark, DK2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Andrea Vezzoli
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - David C. Milan
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Qiang Zeng
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AD, U.K
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Nichols RJ, Higgins SJ. Single-Molecule Electronics: Chemical and Analytical Perspectives. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY (PALO ALTO, CALIF.) 2015; 8:389-417. [PMID: 26048551 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-anchem-071114-040118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
It is now possible to measure the electrical properties of single molecules using a variety of techniques including scanning probe microcopies and mechanically controlled break junctions. Such measurements can be made across a wide range of environments including ambient conditions, organic liquids, ionic liquids, aqueous solutions, electrolytes, and ultra high vacuum. This has given new insights into charge transport across molecule electrical junctions, and these experimental methods have been complemented with increasingly sophisticated theory. This article reviews progress in single-molecule electronics from a chemical perspective and discusses topics such as the molecule-surface coupling in electrical junctions, chemical control, and supramolecular interactions in junctions and gating charge transport. The article concludes with an outlook regarding chemical analysis based on single-molecule conductance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard J Nichols
- Department of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZD, United Kingdom;
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Schwarz F, Lörtscher E. Break-junctions for investigating transport at the molecular scale. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2014; 26:474201. [PMID: 25352355 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/26/47/474201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Break-junctions (BJs) enable a pair of atomic-sized electrodes to be created and the relative position between them to be controlled with sub-nanometer accuracy by mechanical means-a level of microscopic control that is not yet achievable by top-down fabrication. Locally, a BJ consists of a single-atom contact, an arrangement that is ideal not only to study various types of quantum point contacts, but also to investigate transport through an individual molecule that can bridge such a junction. In this topical review, we will provide a broad overview on the field of single-molecule electronics, in which BJs serve as the main tool of investigation. To correlate the molecular structure and transport properties to gain a fundamental understanding of the underlying transport mechanisms at the molecular scale, basic experiments that systematically cover all aspects of transport by rational chemical design and tailored experiments are needed. The variety of fascinating transport mechanisms and intrinsic molecular functionalities discovered in the past range from nonlinear transport over conductance switching to quantum interference effects observable even at room temperature. Beside discussing these results, we also look at novel directions and the most recent advances in molecular electronics investigating simultaneously electronic transport and also the mechanical and thermal properties of single-molecule junctions as well as the interaction between molecules and light. Finally, we will describe the requirements for a stepwise transition from fundamental BJ experiments towards technology-relevant architectures for future nanoelectronics applications based on ultimately-scaled molecular building blocks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Schwarz
- IBM Research-Zurich, Department of Science and Technology, Säumerstrasse 4, CH-8803 Rüschlikon, Switzerland
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Sedghi G, García-Suárez VM, Esdaile LJ, Anderson HL, Lambert CJ, Martín S, Bethell D, Higgins SJ, Elliott M, Bennett N, Macdonald JE, Nichols RJ. Long-range electron tunnelling in oligo-porphyrin molecular wires. NATURE NANOTECHNOLOGY 2011; 6:517-23. [PMID: 21804555 DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2011.111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 234] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2011] [Accepted: 06/15/2011] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Short chains of porphyrin molecules can mediate electron transport over distances as long as 5-10 nm with low attenuation. This means that porphyrin-based molecular wires could be useful in nanoelectronic and photovoltaic devices, but the mechanisms responsible for charge transport in single oligo-porphyrin wires have not yet been established. Here, based on electrical measurements of single-molecule junctions, we show that the conductance of the oligo-porphyrin wires has a strong dependence on temperature, and a weak dependence on the length of the wire. Although it is widely accepted that such behaviour is a signature of a thermally assisted incoherent (hopping) mechanism, density functional theory calculations and an accompanying analytical model strongly suggest that the observed temperature and length dependence is consistent with phase-coherent tunnelling through the whole molecular junction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gita Sedghi
- Chemistry Department, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZD, UK
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Zhou XS, Liang JH, Chen ZB, Mao BW. An electrochemical jump-to-contact STM-break junction approach to construct single molecular junctions with different metallic electrodes. Electrochem commun 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/j.elecom.2011.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
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Li ZL. Theoretical Study on Electronic Transport Properties of Oligothiophene Molecular Devices. CHINESE J CHEM PHYS 2011. [DOI: 10.1088/1674-0068/24/02/194-198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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Ie Y, Hirose T, Nakamura H, Kiguchi M, Takagi N, Kawai M, Aso Y. Nature of Electron Transport by Pyridine-Based Tripodal Anchors: Potential for Robust and Conductive Single-Molecule Junctions with Gold Electrodes. J Am Chem Soc 2011; 133:3014-22. [DOI: 10.1021/ja109577f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Ie
- The Institute of Scientific
and Industrial Research (ISIR), Osaka University, 8-1, Mihogaoka, Ibaraki, Osaka 567-0047, Japan
- PRESTO-JST, 4-1-8, Honcho, Kawaguchi, Saitama 333-0012, Japan
| | - Tomoya Hirose
- The Institute of Scientific
and Industrial Research (ISIR), Osaka University, 8-1, Mihogaoka, Ibaraki, Osaka 567-0047, Japan
| | - Hisao Nakamura
- Nanosystem Research Institute (NRI)
“RICS”, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central 2,
Umezono 1-1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8568, Japan
| | - Manabu Kiguchi
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate
School of Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 W4-10, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo
152-8551, Japan
| | - Noriaki Takagi
- Department of Advanced Materials
Science, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa,
Chiba 277-8561, Japan
| | - Maki Kawai
- Department of Advanced Materials
Science, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa,
Chiba 277-8561, Japan
- Surface Chemistry Laboratory, RIKEN, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan
| | - Yoshio Aso
- The Institute of Scientific
and Industrial Research (ISIR), Osaka University, 8-1, Mihogaoka, Ibaraki, Osaka 567-0047, Japan
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Charge Transport in Single Molecular Junctions at the Solid/Liquid Interface. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2011; 313:121-88. [DOI: 10.1007/128_2011_238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
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Tian JH, Yang Y, Zhou XS, Schöllhorn B, Maisonhaute E, Chen ZB, Yang FZ, Chen Y, Amatore C, Mao BW, Tian ZQ. Electrochemically Assisted Fabrication of Metal Atomic Wires and Molecular Junctions by MCBJ and STM-BJ Methods. Chemphyschem 2010; 11:2745-55. [DOI: 10.1002/cphc.201000284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Jan van der Molen S, Liljeroth P. Charge transport through molecular switches. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2010; 22:133001. [PMID: 21389503 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/22/13/133001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 134] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
We review the fascinating research on charge transport through switchable molecules. In the past decade, detailed investigations have been performed on a great variety of molecular switches, including mechanically interlocked switches (rotaxanes and catenanes), redox-active molecules and photochromic switches (e.g. azobenzenes and diarylethenes). To probe these molecules, both individually and in self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), a broad set of methods have been developed. These range from low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) via two-terminal break junctions to larger scale SAM-based devices. It is generally found that the electronic coupling between molecules and electrodes has a profound influence on the properties of such molecular junctions. For example, an intrinsically switchable molecule may lose its functionality after it is contacted. Vice versa, switchable two-terminal devices may be created using passive molecules ('extrinsic switching'). Developing a detailed understanding of the relation between coupling and switchability will be of key importance for both future research and technology.
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Tsoi S, Griva I, Trammell SA, Kedziora G, Schnur JM, Lebedev N. Observation of two discrete conductivity states in quinone-oligo(phenylene vinylene). NANOTECHNOLOGY 2010; 21:85704. [PMID: 20097971 DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/21/8/085704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The single-molecule conductivity of quinone-oligo(phenylene vinylene) (Q-OPV) attached to a gold substrate was studied using electrochemical scanning tunnelling microscopy. The results show that the molecule has two discrete conductivity states: a low-conductivity state, when it is oxidized, and a high-conductivity state, when reduced. The electron transport through the molecule in both states occurs via coherent tunnelling. The molecular conductivity in either oxidation state is independent from the electrochemical gate potential; however, the gate potential can be used to switch the oxidation state of the molecule. Numerical calculations suggest that the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of Q-OPV controls tunnelling through the molecule and that the independence of conductivity from the electrochemical gate in either oxidation state originates from strong penetration of HOMO into the substrate. In addition, the greater delocalization of HOMO in the reduced state than in the oxidized state explains the greater conductivity of Q-OPV in the former than in the latter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stanislav Tsoi
- Center for Bio-Molecular Science and Engineering, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375, USA.
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From Self-Assembly to Charge Transport with Single Molecules – An Electrochemical Approach. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2008; 287:181-255. [DOI: 10.1007/128_2008_152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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