Generation of spin in single cholesterol molecules on gold

Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2016 Apr 14;18(14):9334-7. doi: 10.1039/c5cp07410j.

Abstract

Compact islands of cholesterol on Au(111) were investigated with scanning tunneling microscopy at ∼5 K. Single molecules have been switched among several states, three of which exhibit a sharp spectroscopic feature at the Fermi level. This feature signals the presence of a localized spin and suggests that the molecule may be controllably switched between paramagnetic and diamagnetic states.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't