The scanning tunnelling microscope as an operative tool: doing physics and chemistry with single atoms and molecules.
The scanning tunnelling microscope, initially invented to image surfaces down to the atomic scale, has been further developed in the last few years to an operative tool, with which atoms and molecules can be manipulated at will at low substrate temperatures in different manners to create and investigate artificial structures, whose properties can be investigated employing spectroscopic dI/dV measurements. The tunnelling current can be used to selectively break chemical bonds, but also to induce chemical association. These possibilities give rise to startling new opportunities for physical and chemical experiments on the single atom and single molecule level. Here we provide a short overview on recent results obtained with these techniques.
Rieder
Karl-Heinz
KH
Fachbereich Physik, Freie Universität Berlin, Arnimallee 14, 14195 Berlin, Germany. rieder@physik.fu-berlin.de
Meyer
Gerhard
G
Hla
Saw-Wai
SW
Moresco
Francesca
F
Braun
Kai F
KF
Morgenstern
Karina
K
Repp
Jascha
J
Foelsch
Stefan
S
Bartels
Ludwig
L
D008832:Microchemistry / Q000379:methods*; D008846:Micromanipulation / Q000379:methods*; D016252:Microscopy, Scanning Tunneling / Q000379:methods*; D010812:Physical Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D010825:Physics / Q000379:methods; D013314:Stress, Mechanical