Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating
Published on: April 12, 2018
Azobenzenes as light-controlled molecular electronic switches in nanoscale metal-molecule-metal junctions
Jeffrey M Mativetsky1, Giuseppina Pace, Mark Elbing
1ISIS-CNRS 7006, Université Louis Pasteur, 8 allée Gaspard Monge, 67000 Strasbourg, France.
Abstract:
Conductance switching associated with the photoisomerization of azobenzene-based (Azo) molecules was observed in nanoscopic metal-molecule-metal junctions. The junctions were formed by using a conducting atomic force microscope (C-AFM) approach, where a metallic AFM tip was used to electrically contact a gold-supported Azo self-assembled monolayer. The measured 30-fold increase in conductance is consistent with the expected decrease in tunneling barrier length resulting from the conformational change of the Azo molecule.
Related Concept Videos
Metal-Semiconductor Junctions
Schottky Barriers
Schottky barriers arise when a metal with a work function (Φm) contacts a semiconductor with a different work function (Φs). Initially, electrons transfer until the Fermi levels of the metal and semiconductor align at equilibrium. For instance, if Φm > Φs, the semiconductor Fermi level is higher than the metal's before contact. The semiconductor's...
Biasing of Metal-Semiconductor Junctions
In Schottky junctions, where the semiconductor is n-type, applying a positive voltage to the metal relative to the semiconductor reduces its Fermi...
Metal-Ligand Bonds
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
MOSFET: Enhancement Mode
In their basic form, enhancement-mode MOSFETs are typically non-conductive when the gate-source voltage (Vgs) is zero. This default 'off' state means no current...
Properties of Organometallic Compounds
Mechanically-gated Ion Channels
