Conformational and Spin Effects in Single-Molecule Electronic Transport

This dissertation presents the experimental work on singlemolecule charge transport, particularly on the aspects of spin and orbital conformational effects in singlemolecule junctions. In this dissertation, we employ and develop various singlemolecule techniques, the mechanically controlled break junction (MCBJ), thermoelectric electromigrated...

Magnetic Fingerprints in an All-Organic Radical Molecular Break Junction

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons radicals are organic molecules with a nonzero total magnetic moment. Here, we report on charge-transport experiments with bianthracene-based radicals using a mechanically controlled break junction technique at low temperatures (6 K). The conductance spectra demonstrate that the magnetism of the diradical is...

Correlated Spin Phenomena in Molecular Quantum Transport Devices

In this thesis we study charge transport through individual molecules and mainly focus on the properties of molecular spin. We fabricate nanoscale structures for transport measurements and employ the electromigration break-junction technique to realize three-terminal—transistor-like—single-molecule devices. We investigate the spin-related...

Molecular Electronics: When Multiple Orbitals Matter

Quantum transport in carbon nanotubes

Electronic transport through nanostructures can be very different from trans- port in macroscopic conductors, especially at low temperatures. Carbon na- notubes are tiny cylinders made of carbon atoms. Their remarkable electronic and mechanical properties, together with their small size (a few nm in diameter), make them very attractive for...

Electron spin and charge in semiconductor quantum dots

In this thesis, the spin and charge degree of freedom of electrons in semiconductor lateral and vertical quantum dots are experimentally investigated. The lateral quantum dot devices are defined in a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) below the surface of a GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure, by metallic surface gates. The vertical quantum dots are...

Electron transport and coherence in semiconductor quantum dots and rings

A number of experiments on electron transport and coherence in semiconductor vertical and lateral quantum dots and semiconductor rings is described. Quantum dots are often referred to as "artificial atoms", because of their similarities with real atoms. Examples of such atom-like properties that have been studied, are spin-singlet-triplet...