Dynamic Variation of Rectification Observed in Supramolecular Mixed Mercaptoalkanoic Acid.

Functionality in molecular electronics relies on inclusion of molecular orbital energy level within a transmission window. This can be achieved by designing the active molecule with accessible energy levels or by widening the window. While many studies have adopted the first approach, the latter is challenging because defects in the active molecular component cause low breakdown voltages. Here, it is shown that control over the packing structure of monolayer via supramolecular mixing transforms an inert molecule into a highly tunable rectifier. Binary mixed monolayer composed of alkanethiolates with and without carboxylic acid head group as a proof of concept is formed via a surface-exchange reaction. The monolayer withstands high voltages up to |4.5 V| and shows a dynamic rectification-external bias relationship in magnitude and polarity. Sub-highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) levels activated by the widened transmission window account for these observations. This work demonstrates that simple supramolecular mixing can imbue new electrical properties in electro-inactive organic molecules.

Uniform Silver Nanowire Patterned Electrode on Robust PEN Substrate Using Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) Underlayer.

Silver nanowire (AgNW) electrodes are among the most essential flexible transparent electrodes (FTEs) emerging as promising alternatives to brittle indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. The polymer comprising the plastic substrate to which the AgNWs are applied must also satisfy the mechanical requirements of the final device and withstand the device processing conditions. However, AgNW-based FTEs have some limitations, such as poor adhesion to coated plastic substrates, surface roughness, and difficulty in patterning. This study demonstrates a new strategy for creating AgNW-based patterned flexible poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) (PEN)-based electrodes with appreciable optical and electrical properties. Introducing poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) on the PEN substrate enhanced the adhesion between the substrate and AgNWs and improved the dispersibility of the AgNWs. Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) and a small amount of 2,4-hexadiyne-1,6-diol as a photosensitizer were coated onto the AgNW layer to improve the surface roughness and achieve an effective electrode pattern. By varying the AgNW concentration, we could tune the density and thickness of the AgNWs to optimize the sheet resistance and transmittance. Optimized AgNWs with a sheet resistance of 22.6 Ω/□ and transmittance of 92.3% at 550 nm were achieved. A polymer solar cell (PSC) was fabricated to evaluate the characteristics of the device employing the flexible electrodes. This PSC showed not only a high power conversion efficiency of 11.20%, similar to that of ITO-based devices, but also excellent mechanical stability, which is difficult to achieve in ITO-based flexible devices.

Li-Ion Intercalation, Rectification, and Solid Electrolyte Interphase in Molecular Tunnel Junctions.

This paper describes Li-ion intercalation into a pyrenyl-terminated self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on gold, inspired by the graphite anode in a Li-ion battery, and its effect on tunneling performance in a molecular junction incorporating the SAM. As the concentration of the Li-ion precursor ([LiPF6]) increased from 0 to 10-2 M, the rectification ratio increased to ∼102. Further experiments revealed that the intercalation-induced changes in the orientation of PYR group and in the HOMO energy level account for the enhanced rectification. Treatment with high concentrations of LiPF6 (from 10-2 to 100 M) yielded a considerable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI), mainly composed of LiF, on the surface of the SAM, resulting in the disappearance of rectification. This was attributed to renormalization of the HOMO level back to that of the intact SAM, caused by the SEI layer. Our work demonstrates the interplay among Li-ion intercalation, SEI, and tunneling in the molecular junction, benefiting the research of molecular electronics as well as SAM-based batteries.

Electronic Mechanism of In Situ Inversion of Rectification Polarity in Supramolecular Engineered Monolayer.

This Communication describes polarity inversion in molecular rectification and the related mechanism. Using a supramolecular engineered, ultrastable, binary-mixed self-assembled monolayer (SAM) composed of an organic molecular diode (SC11BIPY) and an inert reinforcement molecule (SC8), we probed a rectification ratio (r)-voltage relationship over an unprecedentedly wide voltage range (up to |3.5 V|) with statistical significance. We observed positive polarity in rectification at |1.0 V| (r = 107), followed by disappearance of rectification at ∼|2.25 V|, and then eventual emergence of new rectification with the opposite polarity at ∼|3.5 V| (r = 0.006; 1/r = 162). The polarity inversion occurred with a span over 4 orders of magnitude in r. Low-temperature experiments, electronic structure analysis, and theoretical calculations revealed that the unusually wide voltage range permits access to molecular orbital energy levels that are inaccessible in the traditional narrow voltage regime, inducing the unprecedented in situ inversion of polarity.

Interstitially Mixed Self-Assembled Monolayers Enhance Electrical Stability of Molecular Junctions.

Electrical breakdown is a critical problem in electronics. In molecular electronics, it becomes more problematic because ultrathin molecular monolayers have delicate and defective structures and exhibit intrinsically low breakdown voltages, which limit device performances. Here, we show that interstitially mixed self-assembled monolayers (imSAMs) remarkably enhance electrical stability of molecular-scale electronic devices without deteriorating function and reliability. The SAM of the sterically bulky matrix (SC11BIPY rectifier) molecule is diluted with a skinny reinforcement (SCn) molecule via the new approach, so-called repeated surface exchange of molecules (ReSEM). Combined experiments and simulations reveal that the ReSEM yields imSAMs wherein interstices between the matrix molecules are filled with the reinforcement molecules and leads to significantly enhanced breakdown voltage inaccessible by traditional pure or mixed SAMs. Thanks to this, bias-driven disappearance and inversion of rectification is unprecedentedly observed. Our work may help to overcome the shortcoming of SAM's instability and expand the functionalities.

Solid State Dilution Controls Marcus Inverted Transport in Rectifying Molecular Junctions.

Traditional Marcus theory accounts for electron transfer reactions in solutions, and the polarity of solvent molecule matters for them. How such an environment polarity affects electron transfer reactions in solid-state devices, however, remains uncertain. This paper describes how the Marcus inverted charge transport is influenced by solid-state molecular dilution in large-area tunneling junctions. A monolayer of 2,2'-bipyridyl terminated n-alkanethiolate (SC11BIPY), which rectifies currents via electron hopping within the inverted regime, is diluted with n-alkanethiolate (SCn) of different lengths (n = 8, 10, or 18) or at different surface mole fractions. The dilution introduces nonpolar environments within the monolayer, hinders stabilization of charged BIPY species upon electron hopping, and pushes the equilibrium of BIPY ⇄ BIPY•- process toward the reverse direction. Our work demonstrates that solid-state molecular dilution permits systematic control of the environment polarity of active component in nanoscale devices, much like solvent polarity control in solution, and their performances.

Superexchange Coupling-Induced Enhancements of Thermoelectric Performance in Saturated Molecules.

To develop thermoelectric devices, it is of the utmost importance to design organic building blocks to have efficient thermopower. Whereas conjugated and aromatic molecules with intrinsic narrow band gaps are attractive candidates to achieve efficient thermoelectric properties, saturated molecules are usually avoided owing to intrinsically poor thermopower. Here we demonstrate that thermopower of saturated molecules can be enhanced by superexchange coupling. Specifically, thermoelectric properties of large-area junctions that contain self-assembled monolayers of oligo(ethylene glycol) thiolates and alkanethiolates are compared. Through large-area thermopower measurements using a liquid metal top electrode, we show that the superexchange coupling enhances the Seebeck coefficient and counterintuitively leads to an increase in the Seebeck coefficient with increasing the length in a certain conformation. The improved thermoelectric performance is attributed to the superexchange-induced enhanced ability to mediate metal wave function in junctions. Our work offers new insights for improving the thermoelectric performance of nonconjugated, saturated molecules.

Interplay of Fermi Level Pinning, Marcus Inverted Transport, and Orbital Gating in Molecular Tunneling Junctions.

This Letter examines the interplay of important tunneling mechanisms-Fermi level pinning, Marcus inverted transport, and orbital gating-in a molecular rectifier. The temperature dependence of the rectifying molecular junction containing 2,2'-bipyridyl terminated n-alkanethiolate was investigated. A bell-shaped trend of activation energy as a function of applied bias evidenced the dominant occurrence of unusual Marcus inverted transport, while retention of rectification at low temperatures implied that the rectification obeyed the resonant tunneling regime. The results allowed reconciling two separately developed transport models, Marcus-Landauer energetics and Fermi level pinning-based rectification. Our work shows that the internal orbital gating can be substituted with the pinning effect, which pushes the transport mechanism into the Marcus inverted regime.

Molecularly Controlled Stark Effect Induces Significant Rectification in Polycyclic-Aromatic-Hydrocarbon-Terminated n-Alkanethiolates.

The variation of the electronic structure of individual molecules as a function of the applied bias matters for the performance of molecular and organic electronic devices. Understanding the structure-electric-field relationship, however, remains a challenge because of the lack of in-operando spectroscopic technique and complexity arising from the ill-defined on-surface structure of molecules and organic-electrode interfaces within devices. We report that a reliable and reproducible molecular diode can be achieved by control of the conjugation length in polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbon (PAH)-terminated n-alkanethiolate (denoted as SC11PAH), incorporated into liquid-metal-based large-area tunnel junctions in the form of a self-assembled monolayer. By taking advantage of the structural simplicity and tunability of SC11PAH and the high-yielding feature of the junction technique, we demonstrate that the increase in the conjugation length of the PAH terminal group leads to a significant rectification ratio up to ∼1.7 × 102 at ±740 mV. Further study suggests that the Stark shift of the molecular energy resonance of the PAH breaks the symmetry of the energy topography across the junction and induces rectification in a temperature-independent charge-transport regime.

Elucidating the Role of Molecule-Electrode Interfacial Defects in Charge Tunneling Characteristics of Large-Area Junctions.

Interfacial chemistry at organic-inorganic contact critically determines the function of a wide range of molecular and organic electronic devices and other systems. The chemistry is, however, difficult to understand due to the lack of easily accessible in-operando spectroscopic techniques that permit access to interfacial structure on a molecular scale. Herein, we compare two analogous junctions formed with identical organic thin film and different liquid top-contacts (water droplet vs eutectic gallium indium alloy) and elucidate the puzzling interfacial characteristics. Specifically, we fine-tune the surface topography of the organic surface using mixed self-assembled monolayers (SAMs): single component SAM composed of rectifier (2,2'-bipyridyl-terminated n-undecanethiolate; denoted as SC11BIPY) is systematically diluted with nonrectifying n-alkanethiolates of different lengths (denoted as SC n where n = 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18). Characterization of the resulting mixed SAMs in wettability and tunneling currents with the two separate liquid top-contacts allows us to investigate the role of phase segregation and gauche defect in the SAM//liquid interfaces. The results reported here show the difference in length between SC11BIPY and SC n is translated into nanoscopic pits and gauche-conformer defects on the surface, and the difference in contact force-hydrostatic vs user pressures-and hence conformity of contact account for the difference in wettability and rectification behaviors. Our work provides an insight into the role of molecule-electrode interfacial defects in performance of molecular-scale electronic devices.

Thermally Controlled Phase Transition of Low-Melting Electrode for Wetting-Based Spontaneous Top Contact in Molecular Tunnel Junction.

Top contacts for molecular-scale electronic devices should exhibit reliable and reproducible electronic performance. This goal is challenging and difficult to achieve because metals are usually evaporated under high-energy conditions that easily damage delicate organic surfaces, and complicated nanofabrication processes are needed for achieving geometrically defined small contact areas. Soft top contacts that are made by users under ambient conditions can circumvent this problem but often show user-dependence. This paper describes that thermally controlled phase transition (TCPT) of low-melting (29.76 °C) electrode comprising gallium covered with a self-passivating oxide layer could be useful to form reliable, spontaneous (i.e., user-independent) top contacts over delicate ultrathin organic films such as self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). As a proof-of-concept, we demonstrate that the phase transition from solid to non-Newtonian liquid for gallium electrode is tuned under mild thermal conditions (room temperature to ∼50 °C), which does not damage the organic component and ensures conformal, geometrically defined contacts. The contact force predominantly depends on wetting of compliant liquid gallium onto SAMs, upon heating, not on user-pressure. Indeed, the TCPT-based large-area tunnel junctions on SAMs of n-mercaptoalkanoic acids yield markedly narrow dispersion of tunneling current density (σlog| J| = 0.04-0.19) and tunneling attenuation coefficient (ß = 0.92 ± 0.02 nC-1) consistent with the literature value. We envisage that our approach can be harnessed to accomplish liquid metal-based tunnel junctions without significant user-to-user variations and hence useful for reliable understanding of charge transport across molecules and practical applications.

Deconvolution of Tunneling Current in Large-Area Junctions Formed with Mixed Self-Assembled Monolayers.

Whereas single-component self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have served widely as organic components in molecular and organic electronics, how the performance of the device is influenced by the heterogeneity of monolayers has been little understood. This paper describes charge transport by quantum tunneling across mixed SAMs of n-alkanethiolates of different lengths formed on ultraflat template-stripped gold substrate. Electrical characterization using liquid metal comprising eutectic gallium-indium alloy reveals that the surface topography of monolayer largely depends on the difference in length between the thiolates and is translated into distribution of tunneling current density. As the length difference is more significant, more phase segregation takes place, leading to an increase in the modality of Gaussian fitting curves. Consequently, statistical analysis permits access to deconvolution of tunneling currents, mirroring the phase-segregated surface. Our work provides an insight into the role of surface topography in the performance of molecular-scale electronic devices.

Gradients of Rectification: Tuning Molecular Electronic Devices by the Controlled Use of Different-Sized Diluents in Heterogeneous Self-Assembled Monolayers.

Molecular electronics has received significant attention in the last decades. To hone performance of devices, eliminating structural defects in molecular components inside devices is usually needed. We herein demonstrate this problem can be turned into a strength for modulating the performance of devices. We show the systematic dilution of a monolayer of an organic rectifier (2,2'-bipyridine-terminated n-undecanethiolate) with electronically inactive diluents (n-alkanethiolates of different lengths), gives remarkable gradients of rectification. Rectification is finely tunable in a range of approximately two orders of magnitude, retaining its polarity. Trends of rectification against the length of the diluent indicate the gradient of rectification is extremely sensitive to the molecular structure of the diluent. Further studies reveal that noncovalent intermolecular interactions within monolayers likely leads to gradients of structural defect and rectification.

Influence of halogen substitutions on rates of charge tunneling across SAM-based large-area junctions.

This paper examines the ability of structural modifications using halogen atoms (F, Cl, Br, and I) to influence tunneling rates across self-assembled monolayer (SAM)-based junctions having the structure Ag(TS)/S(CH2)n(p-C6H4X)//Ga2O3/EGaIn, where S(CH2)n(p-C6H4X) is a SAM of benzenethiol (n = 0) or benzyl mercaptan (n = 1) terminated in a hydrogen (X = H) or a halogen (X = F, Cl, Br, or I) at the para-position. The measured tunneling current densities (J(V); A cm(-2)) indicate that replacing a terminal hydrogen with a halogen atom at the X//Ga2O3 interface leads to a decrease in J(V) by ∼×13 for S(p-C6H4X) and by ∼×50 for SCH2(p-C6H4X). Values of J(V) for the series of halogenated SAMs were indistinguishable, indicating that changes in dipole moment and polarizability caused by introducing different halogen atoms at the interface between the SAM and the Ga2O3/EGaIn electrode do not significantly influence the rates of charge tunneling across the junctions.