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O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik

O 103: Focus Session: Molecular Nanostructures on Surfaces: On-Surface Synthesis and Single-Molecule Manipulation IV

O 103.1: Topical Talk

Friday, March 22, 2024, 10:30–11:00, HE 101

Toward nanofabrication with molecular building blocks — •Christian Wagner — Peter Grünberg Institut (PGI-3), Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany

The control of single-molecule junctions with a scanning probe microscope not only directly benefits molecular electronics and molecular machines, but is also a stepping stone to the more ambitious goal of (supra)molecular nanofabrication. In my talk I will describe key aspects of controlled molecular manipulation. Perhaps the biggest challenge is the lack of information about the atomic configuration of a tip-molecule-surface junction during manipulation. We have developed strategies to monitor this configuration in real time during manipulation or to circumvent the problem using concepts such as reinforcement learning. Precise knowledge of the molecule-surface interactions arising from van der Waals forces and local chemical bonding is central to this endeavor, and I will present our efforts to probe these interactions via molecular manipulation. Appropriate models are another key component in understanding and controlling the manipulation process. I will outline our modeling strategies, ranging from machine-learned models trained on DFT data to models based entirely on experimental observations. Finally, I will discuss scanning quantum dot microscopy, an application enabled by single-molecule manipulation, and report surface potential measurements on atomic chains.

Keywords: single-molecule manipulation; scanning probe microscopy