Molecular Nanoscience

The focus of the group is the investigation of various molecules (or nanostructures) on surfaces. Diverse mechanical, magnetic, and electronic properties are studied using surface sensitive techniques: X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM), X-ray Magnetic Circular Dichroism (XMCD) spectroscopy, Low-Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED) and others.

Currently our main interest is concentrated at controlling spins in adsorbed molecules by chemical and/or physical switches. We perform in-depth studies of various molecule-switch combinations in order to understand the mechanisms ruling the magnetic response. Density Functional Theory (DFT)+U calculations performed by our collaborators (see below) give a very important input to achieve this goal.


Our Research Team

---

Related facility instrumentation

    Surface Science Lab at Laboratory for Micro-and Nanotechnology
    Scanning Probe Microscopy Userlab at Laboratory for Micro-and Nanotechnology
    XMCD (endstation ES3) chamber at the Swiss Light Source
    NanoLab at University of Basel

---

Collaboration with

    Prof. Dr. P. Oppeneer Uppsala University
    Prof. Dr. F. Nolting Swiss Light Source
    Prof. Dr. F. Diederich ETH Zurich
    Prof. S. Decurtins University of Bern
    Dr. A. Kleibert Swiss Light Source
    Dr. N. Ballav IISER Pune

---

Selected Publications

On-surface coordination chemistry of planar molecular spin systems: novel magnetochemical effects induced by axial ligands
C. Wäckerlin, K. Tarafder, D. Siewert, J. Girovsky, T. Hählen, et al.
Chem. Sci. doi:10.1039/c2sc20828h (2012)


Surface doping in pentacene thin-film transistors with few monolayer thick channels
T. Hählen, C. Vanoni, Ch. Wäckerlin, T. A. Jung, and S. Tsujino,
Appl. Phys. Lett. 101, 033305 (2012)


Assembly of 2D ionic layers by reaction of alkali halides with the organic electrophile 7,7,8,8-tetracyano-p-quinodimethane (TCNQ)
C. Wäckerlin, C. Iacovita, D. Chylarecka, P. Fesser, T. A. Jung, et al.
Chem. Commun. 47, 9146 (2011)


Indirect magnetic coupling of manganese porphyrin to a ferromagnetic cobalt substrate
D. Chylarecka, T. K. Kim, K. Tarafder, K. Müller, K. Gödel, et al.
J. Phys. Chem. C 115, 1295 (2011)


Visualizing the Product of a Formal Cycloaddition of 7,7,8,8-Tetracyano-p-quinodimethane (TCNQ) to an Acetylene-Appended Porphyrin by Scanning Tunneling Microscopy on Au(111)
P. Fesser, C. Iacovita, C. Wäckerlin, S. Vijayaraghavan, N. Ballav, et al.
Chem. Eur. J. 17 : 19, 5246-5250, (2011)


Self-assembly and superexchange coupling of magnetic molecules on oxygen-reconstructed ferromagnetic thin film
D. Chylarecka, C. Wäckerlin, T. K. Kim, K. Müller, F. Nolting, et al.
J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 1, 1408 (2010)


Controlling spins in adsorbed molecules by a chemical switch
C. Wäckerlin, D. Chylarecka, A. Kleibert, K. Müller, C. Iacovita et al.
Nature Comm. 1, 61 (2010)


Band Formation from Coupled Quantum Dots Formed by a Nanoporous Network on a Copper Surface
J. Lobo-Checa, M. Matena, K. Müller, J.H. Dil, F. Meier et al.
Science 325, 300 (2009)


Modification of the Cu(110) Shockley surface state by an adsorbed pentacene monolayer
A. Scheybal, K. Müller, R. Bertschinger, M. Wahl, A. Bendounan, et al.
Phys. Rev. B 79, 115406 (2009)


Multimorphism in molecular monolayers: Pentacene on Cu(110)
K. Müller, A. Kara, T. K. Kim, R. Bertschinger, A. Scheybal. et al.
Phys. Rev. B 79, 245421 (2009)


Temperature dependent charge-injection at the metal-organic semiconductor interface and density of states in pristine and doped pentacene
C. Vanoni, T.A. Jung, S. Tsujino,
Appl. Phys. Lett. 94, 253306 (2009)


Reduction of the contact resistance by doping in pentacene few monolayers thin film transistors and self-assembled nanocrystals
C. Vanoni, S. Tsujino and T.A. Jung,
Appl. Phys. Lett. 90, 193119 (2007)


Induced magnetic ordering in a molecular monolayer
A. Scheybal, T. Ramsvik, R. Bertschinger, M. Putero, F. Nolting, et al.
Chem. Phys. Lett. 411, 214 (2005)

---