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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS₂ Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Published on: April 12, 2018

Switchable molecular conductivity.

Ke Wang¹, Norma L Rangel, Subrata Kundu

¹College of Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3123, USA.

Journal of the American Chemical Society

|September 3, 2009

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

We show that stretching citrate molecules between gold nanoparticles can switch their electrical conductivity. Mechanical stress alters electron pathways, tuning conductivity up to tenfold, revealing a new area of mechanochemistry.

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Area of Science:

Molecular electronics
Nanotechnology
Physical chemistry

Background:

Molecular conductivity is crucial for nanoelectronic devices.
Controlling conductivity at the molecular level remains a challenge.
Mechanical forces can influence molecular properties.

Purpose of the Study:

To demonstrate switchable molecular conductivity in citrate molecules.
To investigate the effect of mechanical stress on molecular conductivity.
To explore the underlying mechanochemical principles.

Main Methods:

Assembling citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) into a film.
Applying mechanical stretching to the AuNP film.
Conducting theoretical analysis using density functional theory and Green's function.

Main Results:

Citrate molecular conductivity was found to be switchable.
Mechanical stress altered electron pathways within the citrate backbone.
Conductivity was tuned up and down by as much as 10-fold through applied stress.

Conclusions:

Molecular conductivity of citrate is controllable via mechanical stress.
The observed phenomenon represents a novel aspect of mechanochemistry.
This work opens new avenues for designing mechanically tunable molecular electronic components.