title: Conformational changes of single molecules induced by scanning tunneling microscopy manipulation: a route to molecular switching.
abstract: A detailed experimental and theoretical investigation of the processes involved in the manipulation of individual specially designed porphyrin-based molecules by scanning tunneling microscopy at low temperature is presented. On a stepped Cu(211) surface, the interaction between tip and molecule was used to locally modify in a reversible way the internal configuration of a single molecule, thus drastically changing the tunneling current passing through it. Model calculations confirm that this manipulation realizes the principle of a conformational molecular switch.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Experimentalphysik, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Moresco
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Rieder
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gourdon
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Joachim