Rectification in Single-Molecule Junctions: Beyond the Aviram-Ratner Diode

Latha Venkataraman^a

^aColumbia University, US, Broadway, 3000, New York, United States

Materials for Sustainable Development Conference (MATSUS)
Proceedings of nanoGe September Meeting 2015 (NFM15)

Santiago de Compostela, Spain, 2015 September 6th - 15th

Invited Speaker, Latha Venkataraman, presentation 314
Publication date: 8th June 2015

The proposal to create molecular analogs of circuit components dates back to the work of Aviram and Ratner from 1974, where they suggested using a single molecule as a diode circuit element in giving birth to the field of molecular electronics. This field has advanced tremendously since then; nanoscale single-molecule devices are now also used as test beds for understanding and controlling electron transfer across metal/organic interfaces. Despite the long-standing interest in creating molecular diodes, their experimental realization has been difficult, with only a handful of studies showing rectification at the single molecule level. This is because most designs, such as the Aviram-Ratner model of rectification1, rely on the complex interplay between many variables, such as the level alignments of the molecular components and the Fermi level of the metal electrodes. In this talk, I will review the scanning tunneling microscope break-junction technique we use to measure conductance through single molecule junctions and then present our results illustrating different mechanisms to achieve rectification in single-molecule junctions. I will focus on different mechanisms focusing on the molecular contacts, altering the electrode and showing that quantum interference effects can be used to create asymmetrically coupled molecular junctions that rectify. Finally, I will present new results that illustrate how a high on/off ratio can be created using an environmental gating technique.

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