Magnetic Fingerprints in an All-Organic Radical Molecular Break Junction
T.Y. Baum (TU Delft - QN/van der Zant Lab, Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft)
Saleta Fernández (Universidade de Santiago de Compostela)
Diego Peña (Universidade de Santiago de Compostela)
H. S J van der Zant (Kavli institute of nanoscience Delft, TU Delft - QN/van der Zant Lab)
More Info
expand_more
Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.
Abstract
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 preserved in solid-state devices and that it manifests itself either in the form of a Kondo resonance or inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy signature caused by spin-flip processes. The magnetic fingerprints depend on the exact configuration of the molecule in the junction; this picture is supported by reference measurements on a radical molecule with the same backbone but with one free spin, in which only Kondo anomalies are observed. The results show that the open-shell structures based on the bianthracene core are interesting systems to study spin-spin interactions in solid-state devices, and this may open the way to control them either electrically or by mechanical strain.
help_outline