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[[Vol. 32]Driving Soft Molecular Vehicles on a Metallic Surface_ WPI-MANA.pdf](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/filesets/0581e519-ae70-4bb4-955b-50a45d6c7200/download)

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International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA)

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[[Research Highlights Vol.32] Driving Soft Molecular Vehicles on a Metallic Surface](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/datasets/aaea4c43-f685-4819-995e-3da7759bc31b)

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2022/04/04 10:10 Driving Soft Molecular Vehicles on a Metallic Surface| MANAhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol32.html 1/2Previous  Index  NextResearch Highlights[Vol. 32]Driving Soft Molecular Vehicles on a Metallic Surface24 Dec, 2017Soft molecules deposited on metallic surfaces were driven using a scanning tunnelingmicroscope (STM) without mechanically pulling or pushing them, but by inducinginelastic excitations with the tunneling current.Figure: Schematic diagram showing the interaction of tunneling current with molecules.In nanoscience, compared to rigid molecules, it is challenging to control the movement of softmolecules due to their flexibility. Notably, only one part of soft molecules is suitable for absorbingtunneling current energy that should be used for inducing motion, and not conformational changesof the molecules.A collaboration led by Waka Nakanishi and Katsuhiko Ariga at WPI-MANA and We-hyo Soe andChristian Joachim at GNS and WPI-MANA Satellite, CEMES-CNRS in Toulouse designed, synthesizedand characterized a conformationally flexible molecule consisting of two binaphtyl paddles mountedon a simple phenyl chassis. The vibration modes of the lateral paddles can be exploited to inducethe motion of the molecule on an Au(111) surface using STM inelastic tunneling effects. Themolecule has two different nonplanar configurations in solution that it retains when absorbed onthe surface. However, on the metallic surface it is possible to switch molecules, one at a time, to aflat configuration using a specific STM mechanical manipulation protocol. The flat configuration isthe most interesting one for this work, because only flat molecules can be controllably moved onthe surface by local STM excitations. Once they assume this configuration, the molecules arereasonably stable on the surface.Molecules in the flat configuration were characterized to determine the spots where tunnelingelectrons should be injected to make them move on the surface without mechanically pushingthem. Indeed, depending on the location at which the tunneling current enters the molecule, thiscan assume a nonplanar configuration (different from the original one) instead of moving. If thecurrent is applied on the correct spot, the molecule can move in a controlled way. Theexperimental characterization of the molecules was complemented by molecular dynamicshttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol31.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/index.htmlhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol33.html2022/04/04 10:10 Driving Soft Molecular Vehicles on a Metallic Surface| MANAhttps://www.nims.go.jp/mana/research/highlights/vol32.html 2/2simulations and density functional theory calculations, which helped to uncover the energetics ofthe molecules. In April 2017, a ‘nanocar race’ took place, in which several molecular machinessynthesized by groups from around the world competed with the goal of covering a set distance ona gold surface in the minimum possible amount of time, driven by STM tips. The moleculepresented in this paper is one of the vehicles that took part to the race.Reference"Conformation Manipulation and Motion of a Double Paddle Molecule on an Au(111) Surface"We-Hyo Soe, Yasuhiro Shirai, Corentin Durand, Yusuke Yonamine, Kosuke Minami, Xavier Bouju,Marek Kolmer, Katsuhiko Ariga, Christian Joachim, and Waka NakanishiJournal : ACS Nano 11, 10357-10365 (2017).DOI : 10.1021/acsnano.7b05314AffiliationsInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA), National Institute for MaterialsScience (NIMS), Namiki 1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, JapanContact informationInternational Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics(WPI-MANA)National Institute for Materials Science1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 JapanPhone: +81-29-860-4710E-mail: mana-pr[AT]ml.nims.go.jphttps://samurai.nims.go.jp/profiles/ariga_katsuhiko?locale=enhttps://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsnano.7b05314