Dresden 2009 – scientific programme

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O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik

O 5: Nanostructures at surfaces: Wires, tubes

O 5.1: Talk

Monday, March 23, 2009, 11:15–11:30, SCH A215

Playing pinball with atoms — •Amirmehdi Saedi, Arie van Houslet, Raoul van Gastel, Bene Poelsema, and Harold Zandvliet — University of Twente, Enschede Netherlands

The feasibility of controlling an atomic scale mechanical device by an external electrical signal has been demonstrated [1]. On a Pt modified Ge(001) surface, a switching motion of pairs of dimers is induced by electrons that are directly injected into the atoms with a scanning tunneling microscope tip. By precisely controlling the tip current and distance we make two atom pairs behave like the flippers of an atomic-sized pinball machine. This atomic scale mechanical device can reside in six different configurations which enables the system to exhibit up to five distinct flipping modes.

[1]. A. Saedi, A. van Houselt, R. van Gastel, B. Poelsema and H.J.W. Zandvliet, accepted for publication in Nano Lett.