The Physics of Charge Shuttling and Chemically-Engineered Nanoscale Devices

这是向马萨诸塞大学阿默斯特分校的两名教授颁发的更新的个人调查员奖。这个项目的主要目标是通过精确设计的、自组装的分子规模电子设备进行电荷传输的实验研究。最近发现的机电电荷穿梭现象有望在这些纳米设备中发挥重要作用--特别是因为这些设备具有可以移动和振动的部件。该项目利用了一种器件制造方法，该方法将最近开发的用于化学研究的分子识别组装技术与用于微电子研究的电子束光刻方法相结合。胸腺嘧啶/二氨基三嗪分子识别对将用于在紧密间隔的光刻电极之间定位纳米级粒子。为了探索电荷穿梭效应和单电子电荷效应的相互作用，我们将比较使用“硬弹簧”和“软弹簧”有机桥联分子的器件的输运特性。将使用电容栅电极来研究单电子晶体管的行为。该项目还包括对宏观尺度上的航天飞机动力学的调查，因为许多基本的理解可以通过在更大尺寸的航天飞机装置上的实验来揭示。这项研究可能会影响各种系统的开发和理解：由软/硬复合材料制成的纳米设备、柔性纳米系统、微电子机械(MEMS)设备、特定的生物系统，甚至特定的宏观设备。这项研究项目将为研究生和博士后提供有关凝聚态物理和化学这一交叉学科领域最先进的技术和概念的培训。此培训将为学生在学术、行业或政府实验室的职业生涯做好准备。小型化技术带来了更小、更强大的计算机、更智能的手持设备和功能更强的小工具。然而，我们正在迅速接近通过标准技术继续微电子设备小型化将不会进一步进行的极限。因此，开发可靠的方法来创建一类分子尺寸的设备是至关重要的。这是向位于阿默斯特的马萨诸塞大学的两名研究人员颁发的新奖项，他们将效仿大自然本身树立的强大榜样--通过利用基于分子识别的自组装来构建纳米级结构。在这个项目中，新奇的单电子晶体管器件是以一种模仿生物分子识别其他特定分子的方式自行制造的。预计这些设备将通过一种不寻常的方式携带电能，这种方式涉及到电子从一个地方到另一个地方的“穿梭”。这项研究可能会影响各种系统的开发和理解：由分子和纳米颗粒组成的混合纳米设备、柔性纳米系统、微电子机械(MEMS)设备、特定的生物系统，甚至特定的宏观设备。这项研究项目将为研究生和博士后提供有关凝聚态物理和化学这一交叉学科领域最先进的技术和概念的培训。此培训将为学生在学术界、行业或政府的职业生涯做好准备。*

The is a renewal individual investigator award to two professors at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. The primary objective of this project is to carry out an experimental investigation of charge transport through precisely-engineered, self-assembled molecular-scale electronic devices. The recently identified phenomenon of electromechanical charge shuttling is expected to play a significant role in these nanodevices -- in particular, because these devices have parts that can move and vibrate. This project utilizes a device fabrication approach that integrates recently developed molecular recognition assembly techniques usedin chemical research with electron-beam lithographic methods used in microelectronics research. Thymine/diaminotriazine molecular recognition pairs will be used to position a nanometer-scale particle midway between closely-spaced lithographic electrodes. To explore the interplay of charge shuttling and single-electron charging effects, transport characteristics will be compared for devices using "hard-spring" and "soft-spring" organic bridging molecules. Single-electron transistor behavior will be investigated with the use of a capacitive gate electrode. The project also includes investigations on shuttle dynamics at the macroscopic scale, since much fundamental understanding can be revealed through experiments on larger-sized shuttle devices. This research is likely to impact the development and understanding of a variety of systems: nanodevices made of soft/hard composites, flexible nanosystems, microelectromechanical (MEMS) devices, specific biological systems, and even particular macroscopic devices. This research project will provide training for graduate students and post docs in state-of-the-art techniques and concepts in this interdisciplinary field involving condensed matter physics and chemistry. This training will prepare the students for careers in academe, industry, or government laboratories.%%%Miniaturization technology has resulted in smaller, more powerful computers, smarter handheld devices, and gadgets of increased functionality. However, we are rapidly approaching the limit where the continued miniaturization of microelectronic devices by standard techniques will proceed no further. As a consequence it is crucial to develop reliable methods to create a class of devices at the molecular-size scale. This is a renewal award to two investigators at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst to follow the robust example set by nature itself - to construct nanometer-scale structures by exploiting self-assembly based on molecular recognition. In this project, novel single-electron transistor devices are self-fabricated in a fashion that mimics the way in which biological molecules are able to recognize other specific molecules. These devices are expected to carry electricity by an unusual means that involves electrons which are "shuttled" from one place to another. This research is likely to impact the development and understanding of a variety of systems: hybrid nanodevices made of molecules and nanoparticles, flexible nanosystems, microelectromechanical (MEMS) devices, specific biological systems, and even particular macroscopic devices. This research project will provide training for graduate students and post docs in state-of-the-art techniques and concepts in this interdisciplinary field involving condensed matter physics and chemistry. This training will prepare the students for careers in academe, industry, or government.***