title: Spin Manipulation by Creation of Single-Molecule Radical Cations.
abstract: All-trans-retinoic acid (ReA), a closed-shell organic molecule comprising only C, H, and O atoms, is investigated on a Au(111) substrate using scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. In dense arrays single ReA molecules are switched to a number of states, three of which carry a localized spin as evidenced by conductance spectroscopy in high magnetic fields. The spin of a single molecule may be reversibly switched on and off without affecting its neighbors. We suggest that ReA on Au is readily converted to a radical by the abstraction of an electron.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.
authors.forename: Sujoy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Karan
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices, Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yajie
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices, Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices, Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: I-Po
authors.initials: IP
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Huanjun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: School of Physics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430074, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jing-Tao
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Lü
authors.affiliation: Institut für Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.|Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices, Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.|Beida Information Research (BIR), Tianjin 300457, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yongfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices, Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Lianmao
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Technische Universität München, 85747 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: Georg S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Michelitsch
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Technische Universität München, 85747 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: Reinhard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Maurer
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Technische Universität München, 85747 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: Katharina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Diller
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Theoretische Chemie, Technische Universität München, 85747 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: Karsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Reuter
authors.affiliation: Institut für Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weismann
authors.affiliation: Institut für Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Berndt