IBM Scientists First to Image the Charge Distribution Within a Single Molecule
Until now, it was not possible to directly measure the charge distribution within a single molecule. - The new technique will further the understanding of nanoscale physics and could help develop future applications such as solar photoconversion, energy storage, or molecular scale computing devices.
Zurich, Switzerland - 27 Feb 2012: IBM (NYSE: IBM) scientists were able to measure for the first time how charge is distributed within a single molecule. This achievement will enable fundamental scientific insights into single-molecule switching and bond formation between atoms and molecules. Furthermore, it introduces the possibility of imaging the charge distribution within functional molecular structures, which hold great promise for future applications such as solar photoconversion, energy storage, or molecular scale computing devices.
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As reported in in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, scientists Fabian Mohn, Leo Gross, Nikolaj Moll and Gerhard Meyer of IBM Research - Zurich directly imaged the charge distribution within a single naphthalocyanine molecule using a special kind of atomic force microscopy called Kelvin probe force microscopy at low temperatures and in ultrahigh vacuum.
Whereas scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) can be used for imaging electron orbitals of a molecule, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) can be used for resolving its molecular structure, until now it has not been possible to image the charge distribution within a single molecule.
“This work demonstrates an important new capability of being able to directly measure how charge arranges itself within an individual molecule”, states Michael Crommie, Professor for Condensed Matter Physics at the University of Berkeley. “Understanding this kind of charge distribution is critical for understanding how molecules work in different environments. I expect this technique to have an especially important future impact on the many areas where physics, chemistry, and biology intersect.”
In fact, the new technique together with STM and AFM provides complementary information about the molecule, showing different properties of interest. This is reminiscent of medical imaging techniques such as X-ray, MRI, or ultrasonography, which yield complementary information about a person’s anatomy and health condition.
“The technique provides another channel of information that will further our understanding of nanoscale physics. It will now be possible to investigate at the single-molecule level how charge is redistributed when individual chemical bonds are formed between atoms and molecules on surfaces. This is essential as we seek to build atomic and molecular scale devices,” explains Fabian Mohn of the Physics of Nanoscale Systems group at IBM Research - Zurich.
The technique could for example be used to study charge separation and charge transport in so-called charge-transfer complexes. These consist of two or more molecules and are subject of intense research activity because they hold great promise for applications such as energy storage or photovoltaics.
Gerhard Meyer, a senior IBM scientist who leads the STM and AFM research activities at IBM Research - Zurich adds:”The present work marks an important step in our long term effort on controlling and exploring molecular systems at the atomic scale with scanning probe microscopy.” For his outstanding work in the field, Meyer recently received a European Research Council Advanced Grant. These prestigious grants support “the very best researchers working at the frontiers of knowledge” in Europe.*
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