Bosonic excitation spectra of superconductingBi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δandYBa2Cu3O6+xextracted from scanning tunneling spectra.

A detailed interpretation of scanning tunneling spectra obtained on unconventional superconductors enables one to gain information on the pairing boson. Decisive for this approach are inelastic tunneling events. Due to the lack of momentum conservation in tunneling from or to the sharp tip, those are enhanced in the geometry of a scanning tunneling microscope compared to planar tunnel junctions.

Spatial variations of conductivity of self-assembled monolayers of dodecanethiol on Au/mica and Au/Si substrates.

Determining the conductivity of molecular layers is a crucial step in advancing towards applications in molecular electronics. A common test bed for fundamental investigations on how to acquire this conductivity are alkanethiol layers on gold substrates. A widely used approach in measuring the conductivity of a molecular layer is conductive atomic force microscopy.

Hot luminescence from single-molecule chromophores electrically and mechanically self-decoupled by tripodal scaffolds.

Control over the electrical contact to an individual molecule is one of the biggest challenges in molecular optoelectronics. The mounting of individual chromophores on extended tripodal scaffolds enables both efficient electrical and mechanical decoupling of individual chromophores from metallic leads. Core-substituted naphthalene diimides fixed perpendicular to a gold substrate by a covalently attached extended tripod display high stability with well-defined and efficient electroluminescence down to the single-molecule level.

Band-resolved Caroli-de Gennes-Matricon states of multiple-flux-quanta vortices in a multiband superconductor.

Superconductors are of type I or II depending on whether they form an Abrikosov vortex lattice. Although bulk lead (Pb) is classified as a prototypical type-I superconductor, we show that its two-band superconductivity allows for single-flux-quantum and multiple-flux-quanta vortices in the intermediate state at millikelvin temperature. Using scanning tunneling microscopy, the winding number of individual vortices is determined from the real space wave function of its Caroli-de Gennes-Matricon bound states.

Direct Probing of a Large Spin-Orbit Coupling in the FeSe Superconducting Monolayer on STO.

Spin-orbit coupling (SOC) is a fundamental physical interaction, which describes how the electrons' spin couples to their orbital motion. It is the source of a vast variety of fascinating phenomena in nanostructures. Although in most theoretical descriptions of high-temperature superconductivity SOC has been neglected, including this interaction can, in principle, revise the microscopic picture.

Proximity-Induced Superconductivity in Atomically Precise Nanographene on Ag/Nb(110).

Obtaining a robust superconducting state in atomically precise nanographene (NG) structures by proximity to a superconductor could foster the discovery of topological superconductivity in graphene. On-surface synthesis of such NGs has been achieved on noble metals and metal oxides; however, it is still absent on superconductors. Here, we present a synthetic method to induce superconductivity of polymeric chains and NGs adsorbed on the superconducting Nb(110) substrate covered by thin Ag films.

Observation of Exchange Interaction in Iron(II) Spin Crossover Molecules in Contact with Passivated Ferromagnetic Surface of Co/Au(111).

Spin crossover (SCO) complexes sensitively react on changes of the environment by a change in the spin of the central metallic ion making them ideal candidates for molecular spintronics. In particular, the composite of SCO complexes and ferromagnetic (FM) surfaces would allow spin-state switching of the molecules in combination with the magnetic exchange interaction to the magnetic substrate. Unfortunately, when depositing SCO complexes on ferromagnetic surfaces, spin-state switching is blocked by the relatively strong interaction between the adsorbed molecules and the surface.

Activating Electroluminescence of Charged Naphthalene Diimide Complexes Directly Adsorbed on a Metal Substrate.

Electroluminescence from single molecules adsorbed on a conducting surface imposes conflicting demands for the molecule-electrode coupling. To conduct electrons, the molecular orbitals need to be hybridized with the electrodes. To emit light, they need to be decoupled from the electrodes to prevent fluorescence quenching.

Indirect Spin-Readout of Rare-Earth-Based Single-Molecule Magnet with Scanning Tunneling Microscopy.

Rare-earth based single-molecule magnets are promising candidates for magnetic information storage including qubits as their large magnetic moments are carried by localized 4f electrons. This shielding from the environment in turn hampers a direct electronic access to the magnetic moment. Here, we present the indirect readout of the Dy moment in Bis(phthalocyaninato)dysprosium (DyPc_{2}) molecules on Au(111) using milli-Kelvin scanning tunneling microscopy.

Synthesis and Surface Behaviour of NDI Chromophores Mounted on a Tripodal Scaffold: Towards Self-Decoupled Chromophores for Single-Molecule Electroluminescence.

This paper reports the efficient synthesis, absorption and emission spectra, and the electrochemical properties of a series of 2,6-disubstituted naphthalene-1,4,5,8-tetracarboxdiimide (NDI) tripodal molecules with thioacetate anchors for their surface investigations. Our studies showed that, in particular, the pyrrolidinyl group with its strong electron-donating properties enhanced the fluorescence of such core-substituted NDI chromophores and caused a significant bathochromic shift in the absorption spectrum with a correspondingly narrowed bandgap of 1.94 eV.

Addressing a lattice of rotatable molecular dipoles with the electric field of an STM tip.

Functional molecular groups mounted on specific foot structures are ideal model systems to study intermolecular interactions, due to the possibility to separate the functionality and the adsorption mechanism. Here, we report on the rotational switching of a thioacetate group mounted on a tripodal tetraphenylmethane (TPM) derivative adsorbed in ordered islands on a Au(111) surface. Using low temperature scanning tunnelling microscopy, individual freestanding molecular groups of the lattice can be switched between two bistable orientations.

Boosting Light Emission from Single Hydrogen Phthalocyanine Molecules by Charging.

Interest in electroluminescence of single molecules is stimulated by the prospect of possible applications in novel light emitting devices. Recent studies provide valuable insights into the mechanisms leading to single molecule electroluminescence. Concrete information on how to boost the intensity of the emitted light, however, is rare.

Spin fluctuation induced Weyl semimetal state in the paramagnetic phase of EuCdAs.

Weyl fermions as emergent quasiparticles can arise in Weyl semimetals (WSMs) in which the energy bands are nondegenerate, resulting from inversion or time-reversal symmetry breaking. Nevertheless, experimental evidence for magnetically induced WSMs is scarce. Here, using photoemission spectroscopy, we observe that the degeneracy of Bloch bands is already lifted in the paramagnetic phase of EuCdAs.

Towards Laterally Resolved Ferromagnetic Resonance with Spin-Polarized Scanning Tunneling Microscopy.

We used a homodyne detection to investigate the gyration of magnetic vortex cores in Fe islands on W(110) with spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy at liquid helium temperatures. The technique aims at local detection of the spin precession as a function of frequency using a radio-frequency (rf) modulation of the tunneling bias voltage. The gyration was excited by the resulting spin-polarized rf current in the tunneling junction.

Six state molecular revolver mounted on a rigid platform.

The rotation of entire molecules or large moieties happens at 100 ps time scales and the transition process itself is experimentally inaccessible to scanning probe techniques. However, the reversible switching of a molecule between more than two metastable states allows to assign a rotational switching direction. Rotational switching is a phenomenon that is particularly interesting with regard to possible applications in molecular motors.

Light collection from a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope using integrated mirror tips fabricated by direct laser writing.

We report on a cryogenic scanning tunneling microscope (STM) designed for single molecule studies, in which the light emitted from the tunneling junction is collected by an integrated optics on the tip. Using direct laser writing, the tip and the surrounding microscopic parabolic mirror are fabricated as one piece, which is small enough to collimate the collected light directly into an optical multimode fiber fixed inside the STM. This simple and compact setup combines high collection efficiency and ease of handling while not interfering with the cryostat operation, allowing uninterrupted measurements at 1.

A compact ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscope with dilution refrigeration.

We have designed and built a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) setup for operation at millikelvin temperatures in an ultrahigh vacuum. A compact cryostat with an integrated dilution refrigerator has been built that allows measurements at a base temperature of 25 mK in the magnetic field up to 7.5 T with low mechanical and electronic noise.

Spin waves in disordered materials.

We present an efficient methodology to study spin waves in disordered materials. The approach is based on a Heisenberg model and enables calculations of magnon properties in spin systems with disorder of an arbitrary kind and concentration of impurities. Disorder effects are taken into account within two complementary approaches.

Linking Electronic Transport through a Spin Crossover Thin Film to the Molecular Spin State Using X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy Operando Techniques.

One promising route toward encoding information is to utilize the two stable electronic states of a spin crossover molecule. Although this property is clearly manifested in transport across single molecule junctions, evidence linking charge transport across a solid-state device to the molecular film's spin state has thus far remained indirect. To establish this link, we deploy materials-centric and device-centric operando experiments involving X-ray absorption spectroscopy.

Publisher Correction: Stabilizing spin spirals and isolated skyrmions at low magnetic field exploiting vanishing magnetic anisotropy.

The original version of this Article had an incorrect Received date of 21 November 2016; it should have been 21 November 2017. This has been corrected in the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.

Abrupt Switching of Crystal Fields during Formation of Molecular Contacts.

Magnetic molecules have the potential to be used as building blocks for bits in quantum computers. The spin states of the magnetic ion in the molecule can be represented by the effective spin Hamiltonian describing the zero field splitting (ZFS) of the magnetic states. We determined the ZFS of mechanically flexible metal-chelate molecules (Co, Ni, and Cu as metal ions) adsorbed on CuN/Cu(100) by inelastic tunneling spectroscopy at temperatures down to 30 mK.

Stabilizing spin spirals and isolated skyrmions at low magnetic field exploiting vanishing magnetic anisotropy.

Skyrmions are topologically protected non-collinear magnetic structures. Their stability is ideally suited to carry information in, e.g.

Molecular Graph Paper.

We present a self-assembled template that consists of tetraphenylmethane derivatives and adopts a periodic lateral arrangement on a Au(111) surface with acetyl groups sticking out of the molecular film. By using the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope, these acetyl groups can be removed in a spatially controlled way without significantly affecting the remaining molecular assembly. The chemically modified molecules can be readily distinguished from the original ones such that information can be engraved in the molecular film.

Tracing the Electronic Pairing Glue in Unconventional Superconductors via Inelastic Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy.

Scanning tunneling microscopy has been shown to be a powerful experimental probe to detect electronic excitations and further allows us to deduce fingerprints of bosonic collective modes in superconductors. Here, we demonstrate that the inclusion of inelastic tunnel events is crucial for the interpretation of tunneling spectra of unconventional superconductors and allows us to directly probe electronic and bosonic excitations via scanning tunneling microscopy. We apply the formalism to the iron based superconductor LiFeAs.