Department of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-747, Korea.
Nano Lett. 2013 Jun 12;13(6):2809-13. doi: 10.1021/nl401067x. Epub 2013 May 28.
Molecules are promising candidates for electronic device components because of their small size, chemical tunability, and ability to self-assemble. A major challenge when building molecule-based electronic devices is forming reliable molecular junctions and controlling the electrical current through the junctions. Here, we report a three-terminal junction that combines both the ability to form a stable single-molecule junction via the mechanically controllable break junction (MCBJ) technique and the ability to shift the energy levels of the molecule by gating. Using a noncontact side-gate electrode located a few nanometers away from the molecular junction, the conductance of the molecule could be dramatically modulated because the electrical field applied to the molecular junction from the side gate changed the molecular electronic structure, as confirmed by the ab initio calculations. Our study will provide a new design for mechanically stable single-molecule transistor junctions fabricated by the MCBJ method.
分子由于其尺寸小、化学可调性以及自组装能力，成为电子器件组件的有前途的候选者。在构建基于分子的电子器件时，主要的挑战是形成可靠的分子结并控制结处的电流。在这里，我们报告了一种三端结，它结合了通过机械可控的断结（MCBJ）技术形成稳定的单分子结的能力，以及通过门控改变分子能级的能力。使用位于离分子结几纳米远的非接触式侧门电极，可以显著调制分子的电导，因为从侧门施加到分子结的电场改变了分子的电子结构，这一点通过从头计算得到了证实。我们的研究将为通过 MCBJ 方法制造的机械稳定的单分子晶体管结提供新的设计。
