Search results for " Scanning Tunneling"
showing 10 items of 17 documents
Odorant binding changes the electrical properties of olfactory receptors at the nanoscale
2021
Olfactory receptors (ORs) comprise the largest multigene family in the vertebrates. They belong to the class A (rhodopsin-like) family of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), which are the most abundant membrane proteins, having widespread, significant roles in signal transduction in cells, and therefore, they are a major pharmacological target. Moreover, ORs displayed high selectivity and sensitivity towards odorant detection, a characteristic that raised the interest for developing biohybrid sensors based on ORs for the detection of volatile compounds. The transduction of odorant binding into cellular signaling by ORs is not well understood and knowing its mechanism would enable developin…
Probing DNA conductivity with photoinduced electron transfer and scanning tunneling microscopy.
2012
Abstract The possibility that the stacked DNA bases can mediate vectorial electron transfer has been examined using two different approaches. Experiments on photoinduced electron transfer with intercalated donors and acceptors (either randomly bound or linked dyads of ruthenium complex and viologen) indicate that while DNA may be a better medium than acetonitrile for electron transfer over short distances (2-3-base pair, equivalent to 10-14Å centre-to-centre separation), it is a poor medium for transport over larger separations. Attempts to measure conductivity of individual DNA molecules using scanning tunneling microscopy to image mixed monolayers of mercaptohexanol (MCH) and 30-mer or 10…
Optical properties of biocompatible polyaniline nano-composites
2006
Abstract Polyaniline (PANI) is an electro-active polymer of great interest thanks to its outstanding physical and chemical properties which make it suitable for various applications in optics, bioelectronics, biosensors, diagnostics and therapeutic devices. Unfortunately, PANI is infusible and insoluble in most common solvents and, thus, very difficult to process. In the attempt of improving processability, yet preserving its interesting properties, PANI has been synthesized in the form of particles and dispersed into a hydrogel matrix. The synthesis of PANI–hydrogel composites proceeds via γ-irradiation of PANI dispersions as obtained by ‘in situ’ polymerization of aniline in the presence …
Atomic-scale magnetic domain walls in quasi-one-dimensional Fe nanostripes.
2001
Fe nanostripes on W(110) are investigated by Kerr magnetometry and spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy (SP-STM). An Arrhenius law is observed for the temperature dependent magnetic susceptibility indicating a one-dimensional magnetic behavior. The activation energy for creating antiparallel spin blocks indicates extremely narrow domain walls with a width on a length scale of the lattice constant. This is confirmed by imaging the domain wall by SP-STM. This information allows the quantification of the exchange stiffness and the anisotropy constant.
Spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy of ultrathinFe∕Mo(110)films usingW∕Au∕Cotips
2006
We report on magnetic contrast observed in low-temperature spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy (SP-STM) of Fe nanowires deposited on Mo(110) using tungsten tips covered by $\mathrm{Au}∕\mathrm{Co}$ thin films. Due to the spin reorientation transition of Co films on Au an out-of-plane magnetic sensitivity is obtained for tips with thin cobalt films (up to 8 monolayers of Co), while for thicker Co coverages an in-plane magnetization component can be probed. Using $\mathrm{W}∕\mathrm{Au}∕\mathrm{Co}$ tips with out-of-plane magnetic sensitivity we show that the one (ML) and two (DL) atomic layers thick Fe nanowires prepared using step flow growth on a Mo(110) crystal are perpendicularl…
Temperature-driven spin reorientation transition inFe∕Mo(110)nanostructures
2007
Using low-temperature spin polarized scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy, we observed a temperature-driven spin-reorientation transition (SRT) in Fe double layer (DL) nanostructures grown by step-flow growth on Mo(110). Magnetization components along the vertical and horizontal directions were detected with $4∕16$ ML Co∕10 ML $\mathrm{Au}∕\mathrm{W}(110)$ tips with out-of-plane (4 ML Co) and in-plane (16 ML Co) magnetic sensitivities. The magnetic easy axis of the Fe DL nanostructures continuously rotates from the vertical direction at $5\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$ to an in-plane direction at $20\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$. The rotation angle is independent …
Electronic structure of MgO-supported Au clusters: quantum dots probed by scanning tunneling microscopy.
2007
We investigate via density functional theory (DFT) the appearance of small MgO-supported gold clusters with 8 to 20 atoms in a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) experiment. Comparison of simulations of ultrathin films on a metal support with a bulk MgO leads to similar results for the cluster properties relevant for STM. Simulated STM pictures show the delocalized states of the cluster rather than the atomic structure. This finding is due to the presence of s- derived delocalized states of the cluster near the Fermi energy. The properties of theses states can be understood from a jellium model for monovalent gold.
Deformation-Free Topography from Combined Scanning Force and Tunnelling Experiments
1993
We show that by measuring force and stiffness on a constant-current scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) contour a deformation-free topography can be extracted. With reference to mono- and bicomponent self-assembled monolayers, we find that the characteristic depression pattern and the protrusions on a multicomponent film found in STM are to a great extent due to electronic effects.
Probing large area surface plasmon interference in thin metal films using photon scanning tunneling microscopy.
2003
Abstract The interference of surface plasmons can provide important information regarding the surface features of the hosting thin metal film. We present an investigation of the interference of optically excited surface plasmons in the Kretschmann configuration in the visible spectrum. Large area surface plasmon interference regions are generated at several wavelengths and imaged with the photon scanning tunneling microscope. Furthermore, we discuss the non-retarded dispersion relations for the surface plasmons in the probe–metal system modeled as confocal hyperboloids of revolution in the spheroidal coordinate systems.
Surface plasmon polariton propagation length: A direct comparison using photon scanning tunneling microscopy and attenuated total reflection
2001
The propagation of surface plasmon polaritons (SPP's) is studied using a photon scanning tunneling microscope (PSTM) and conventional attenuated total reflection (ATR). The PSTM experiment uses localized (focused beam) launching of SPP's at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. Propagation of the SPP is observed as an exponentially decaying tail beyond the launch site and the $1/e$ propagation length is measured directly for a series of Ag films of different thicknesses. The ATR measurements are used to characterize the thin film optical and thickness parameters, revealing, notably, the presence of a contaminating adlayer of ${\mathrm{Ag}}_{2}\mathrm{S}$ of typical dielectric function, $8.7+i2.7,$ and …