Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
Nanotechnology. 2011 Dec 2;22(48):485703. doi: 10.1088/0957-4484/22/48/485703. Epub 2011 Nov 9.
The scanning tunneling microscope break junction (STMBJ) technique is a powerful approach for creating single-molecule junctions and studying electrical transport in them. However, junctions created using the STMBJ technique are usually mechanically stable for relatively short times (<1 s), impeding detailed studies of their charge transport characteristics. Here, we report a custom-designed scanning tunneling microscope that enables the creation of metal-single molecule-metal junctions that are mechanically stable for more than 1 minute at room temperature. This stability is achieved by a design that minimizes thermal drift as well as the effect of environmental perturbations. The utility of this instrument is demonstrated by performing transition voltage spectroscopy-at the single-molecule level-on Au-hexanedithiol-Au, Au-octanedithiol-Au and Au-decanedithiol-Au junctions.
扫描隧道显微镜断键（STM-BJ）技术是一种创建单分子键和研究其电输运的强大方法。然而，使用 STM-BJ 技术创建的键通常在相对较短的时间内（<1 秒）机械稳定，阻碍了对其电荷输运特性的详细研究。在这里，我们报告了一种定制设计的扫描隧道显微镜，该显微镜能够创建在室温下机械稳定超过 1 分钟的金属-单分子-金属键。这种稳定性是通过一种设计实现的，该设计最大限度地减少了热漂移以及环境干扰的影响。通过在 Au-hexanedithiol-Au、Au-octanedithiol-Au 和 Au-decanedithiol-Au 键上进行单分子水平的转变电压光谱学，证明了该仪器的实用性。
