Magnetic fingerprint of individual Fe4 molecular magnets under compression by a scanning tunnelling microscope.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 26359203.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/ncomms9216 and PMC identifier 4579601.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Single-molecule magnets (SMMs) present a promising avenue to develop spintronic technologies. Addressing individual molecules with electrical leads in SMM-based spintronic devices remains a ubiquitous challenge: interactions with metallic electrodes can drastically modify the SMM's properties by charge transfer or through changes in the molecular structure. Here, we probe electrical transport through individual Fe4 SMMs using a scanning tunnelling microscope at 0.5 K. Correlation of topographic and spectroscopic information permits identification of the spin excitation fingerprint of intact Fe4 molecules. Building from this, we find that the exchange coupling strength within the molecule's magnetic core is significantly enhanced. First-principles calculations support the conclusion that this is the result of confinement of the molecule in the two-contact junction formed by the microscope tip and the sample surface.