An All-Electric Single-Molecule Motor

TL;DR

This paper introduces an all-electronic molecular motor that uses electric fields and currents for control and detection, offering precise manipulation of molecular rotation at various temperatures.

Contribution

It presents a novel electric field-driven molecular motor design with real-time conductivity-based motion detection, enabling full control over speed and motion continuity.

Findings

Quantum chemistry confirms controllable rotational motion.

Electrical control achieves high precision at different temperatures.

Design allows for chemical tuning of motor parameters.

Abstract

Many types of molecular motors have been proposed and synthesized in recent years, displaying different kinds of motion, and fueled by different driving forces such as light, heat, or chemical reactions. We propose a new type of molecular motor based on electric field actuation and electric current detection of the rotational motion of a molecular dipole embedded in a three-terminal single-molecule device. The key aspect of this all-electronic design is the conjugated backbone of the molecule, which simultaneously provides the potential landscape of the rotor orientation and a real-time measure of that orientation through the modulation of the conductivity. Using quantum chemistry calculations, we show that this approach provides full control over the speed and continuity of motion, thereby combining electrical and mechanical control at the molecular level over a wide range of temperatures. Moreover, chemistry can be used to change all key parameters of the device, enabling a variety of new experiments on molecular motors.