Systematic assessment of a nanoparticle bridge platform for molecular electronics measurements

• A combination of electron beam lithography, photolithography and focused ion beam milling was used to create a nanogap platform, which was bridged by gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in order to make electrical measurements and assess the platform under ambient conditions. Initially bare electrodes were tested to determine the response of the platform and it was found that creating devices in ambient conditions requires careful cleaning processes and awareness of the contributions contaminants may make to measurements. Both octanethiol (OT) and Biphenyldithiol (BPDT) molecules were also tested by functionalizing the nanoelectrodes with the molecules prior to bridging the nanogap with the nanoparticles. Measurements on OT show that it is possible to make measurements on relatively small numbers of molecules, but that a large variation in response can be expected when one of the metal-molecule junctions is physisorbed, which was partially explained by attachment of OT molecules to different sites on the surface of the Au electrode using a density function theory calculation. On the other hand, when dealing with BPDT, high yields for device creation are very difficult to achieve when preparing the devices in ambient conditions. Significant hysteresis, or conductance switching, in the I-V curves of BPDT was also observed, which we attribute primarily to voltage induced changes at the interface between the molecule and the metal.

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Nanoteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Nano-technology (hsv//eng)

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