Massively parallel fabrication of crack-defined gold break junctions featuring sub-3 nm gaps for molecular devices

Gehring, Pascal (author): Delft Univ Technol, Kavli Inst Nanosci, Lorentzweg 1, NL-2628 CJ Delft, Netherlands.

Caneva, Sabina (author): Delft Univ Technol, Kavli Inst Nanosci, Lorentzweg 1, NL-2628 CJ Delft, Netherlands.

van der Zant, Herre S. J. (author): Delft Univ Technol, Kavli Inst Nanosci, Lorentzweg 1, NL-2628 CJ Delft, Netherlands.

(creator_code:org_t)

Related links:: https://www.nature.c...; show more...; https://urn.kb.se/re...; https://doi.org/10.1...; show less...

Abstract Subject headings

Break junctions provide tip-shaped contact electrodes that are fundamental components of nano and molecular electronics. However, the fabrication of break junctions remains notoriously time-consuming and difficult to parallelize. Here we demonstrate true parallel fabrication of gold break junctions featuring sub-3 nm gaps on the wafer-scale, by relying on a novel self-breaking mechanism based on controlled crack formation in notched bridge structures. We achieve fabrication densities as high as 7 million junctions per cm(2), with fabrication yields of around 7% for obtaining crack-defined break junctions with sub-3 nm gaps of fixed gap width that exhibit electron tunneling. We also form molecular junctions using dithiol-terminated oligo(phenylene ethynylene) (OPE3) to demonstrate the feasibility of our approach for electrical probing of molecules down to liquid helium temperatures. Our technology opens a whole new range of experimental opportunities for nano and molecular electronics applications, by enabling very large-scale fabrication of solid-state break junctions.

By the author/editor: Dubois, Valentin ...; Raja, Shyamprasa ...; Gehring, Pascal; Caneva, Sabina; van der Zant, He ...; Niklaus, Frank, ...; show more...; Stemme, Göran, 1 ...; show less...

About the subject

NATURAL SCIENCES: NATURAL SCIENCES; and Physical Science ...; and Condensed Matter ...

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