An energy-filtering device coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer for soft-landing molecular ions on surfaces with controlled energy.

We have developed an energy-filtering device coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer to deposit ionized molecules on surfaces with controlled energy in ultra high vacuum environment. Extensive numerical simulations as well as direct measurements show that the ion beam flying out of a quadrupole exhibits a high-energy tail decreasing slowly up to several hundred eV. This energy distribution renders impossible any direct soft-landing deposition of molecular ions. To remove this high-energy tail by energy filtering, a 127° electrostatic sector and a specific triplet lenses were designed and added after the last quadrupole of a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. The results obtained with this energy-filtering device show clearly the elimination of the high-energy tail. The ion beam that impinges on the sample surface satisfies now the soft-landing criterion for molecular ions, opening new research opportunities in the numerous scientific domains involving charges adsorbed on insulating surfaces.

Multiple atomic scale solid surface interconnects for atom circuits and molecule logic gates.

The scientific and technical challenges involved in building the planar electrical connection of an atomic scale circuit to N electrodes (N > 2) are discussed. The practical, laboratory scale approach explored today to assemble a multi-access atomic scale precision interconnection machine is presented. Depending on the surface electronic properties of the targeted substrates, two types of machines are considered: on moderate surface band gap materials, scanning tunneling microscopy can be combined with scanning electron microscopy to provide an efficient navigation system, while on wide surface band gap materials, atomic force microscopy can be used in conjunction with optical microscopy. The size of the planar part of the circuit should be minimized on moderate band gap surfaces to avoid current leakage, while this requirement does not apply to wide band gap surfaces. These constraints impose different methods of connection, which are thoroughly discussed, in particular regarding the recent progress in single atom and molecule manipulations on a surface.

Step-induced tip polarity reversal investigated by dynamic force microscopy on KBr(001).

We present atomic resolution images of monatomic step edges on the KBr(001) surface imaged by dynamic force microscopy operated in the non-contact mode. Under certain experimental conditions, we observe a systematic and reversible change of the atomic contrast when the tip crosses the step. This change is attributed to the reversal of the polarity of the ionic tip under the influence of the tip-substrate interaction in the immediate vicinity of the step edge. This polarity reversal is attributed to a change in the atomic structure of the tip and is described by a transition between the two potential wells of a two-level system localized near the tip apex. The case of two monatomic steps imaged in succession is also investigated in detail. The results indicate that the two-level system associated with the reversal of the tip polarity involves the movement of a very limited number of ions on the tip.

Exciton-photon strong-coupling regime for a single quantum dot embedded in a microcavity.

We report on the observation of the strong-coupling regime between the excitonic transition of a single GaAs quantum dot and a discrete optical mode of a microdisk microcavity. Photoluminescence is performed at various temperatures to tune the quantum dot exciton with respect to the optical mode. At resonance, we observe a clear anticrossing behavior, signature of the strong-coupling regime. The vacuum Rabi splitting amounts to 400 microeV and is twice as large as the individual linewidths.

Exciton and biexciton fine structure in single elongated islands grown on a vicinal surface

We report a microphotoluminescence study of the exciton and the biexciton localized in very elongated islands formed by well-width fluctuations in a thin CdTe/CdMgTe quantum well grown on a vicinal surface. The electron-hole exchange interaction in a local reduced symmetry splits the exciton states. The resulting transitions are linearly polarized along the two orthogonal principal axes of the island. The valence band mixing induced by the elongated shape of the potential leads to a strong polarization anisotropy and to the observation of dark exciton states under magnetic field. The biexciton-exciton transition reproduces all the fine structure of the exciton state including the transition of the biexciton to the dark exciton state.