Sequential Electron Transport and Vibrational Excitations in an Organic Molecule Coupled to Few-Layer Graphene Electrodes
E Burzuri Linares (TU Delft - QN/van der Zant Lab, Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft)
JO Island (TU Delft - QN/van der Zant Lab, Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft)
R Diaz-Torres (ICMAB-CSIC, Universitat de Barcelona, External organisation)
A Fursina (Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft, TU Delft - QRD/Kouwenhoven Lab)
A González-Campo (ICMAB-CSIC, External organisation)
O Roubeau (Instituto de Ciencias de Materiales Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza, External organisation)
SJ Teat (External organisation, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
N Aliaga-Alcalde (ICMAB-CSIC, ICREA, External organisation)
E Ruiz (Universitat de Barcelona, External organisation)
HSJ van der Zant (Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft, TU Delft - QN/van der Zant Lab)
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Abstract
Graphene electrodes are promising candidates to improve reproducibility and stability in molecular electronics through new electrode–molecule anchoring strategies. Here we report sequential electron transport in few-layer graphene transistors containing individual curcuminoid-based molecules anchored to the electrodes via π–π orbital bonding. We show the coexistence of inelastic co-tunneling excitations with single-electron transport physics due to an intermediate molecule–electrode coupling; we argue that an intermediate electron–phonon coupling is the origin of these vibrational-assisted excitations. These experimental observations are complemented with density functional theory calculations to model electron transport and the interaction between electrons and vibrational modes of the curcuminoid molecule. We find that the calculated vibrational modes of the molecule are in agreement with the experimentally observed excitations.