Unprecedented switching endurance affords for high-resolution surface temperature mapping using a spin-crossover film.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 32681047.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-17362-7 and PMC identifier 7367879.
- 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
Temperature measurement at the nanoscale is of paramount importance in the fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology, and calls for the development of versatile, high-resolution thermometry techniques. Here, the working principle and quantitative performance of a cost-effective nanothermometer are experimentally demonstrated, using a molecular spin-crossover thin film as a surface temperature sensor, probed optically. We evidence highly reliable thermometric performance (diffraction-limited sub-µm spatial, µs temporal and 1 °C thermal resolution), which stems to a large extent from the unprecedented quality of the vacuum-deposited thin films of the molecular complex [Fe(HB(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)<sub>3</sub>)<sub>2</sub>] used in this work, in terms of fabrication and switching endurance (>10<sup>7</sup> thermal cycles in ambient air). As such, our results not only afford for a fully-fledged nanothermometry method, but set also a forthcoming stage in spin-crossover research, which has awaited, since the visionary ideas of Olivier Kahn in the 90's, a real-world, technological application.