Anisotropic Ballistic Transport Revealed by Molecular Nanoprobe Experiments

TL;DR

This study uses molecular nanoprobe experiments to reveal anisotropic ballistic charge transport on Pd(110) surfaces, showing strong directional dependence influenced by atomic structure at nanometer scales.

Contribution

It introduces a novel experimental approach to directly measure atomic-scale ballistic transport properties on metallic surfaces.

Findings

Charge transport exhibits a strong angular dependence with a dip along atomic rows.

Transport peaks are observed in the transverse direction, indicating anisotropy.

Transport properties are significantly affected by atomic structure at nanometer scales.

Abstract

Atomic-scale charge transport properties are not only of significant fundamental interest but also highly relevant for numerous technical applications. However, experimental methods which are capable of detecting charge transport at the relevant single-digit nanometer length scales are scarce. Here we report on molecular nanoprobe (MONA) experiments on Pd(110) where we utilize the charge carrier-driven switching of a single cis-2-butene molecule to detect ballistic transport properties over length scales of a few nanometers. Our data demonstrate a striking angular dependence with a dip in charge transport along the [1-10]-oriented atomic rows and a peak in the transverse [001] direction. The narrow angular width of both features and distance-dependent measurements suggest that the nanometer-scale ballistic transport properties of metallic surfaces is significantly influenced by the atomic structure.