On-Surface Synthesis and Characterization of Radical Spins in Kagome Graphene
Flat bands in Kagome graphene might host strong electron correlations and frustrated magnetism upon electronic doping. However, the porous nature of Kagome graphene opens a semiconducting gap due to quantum confinement, preventing its fine-tuning by electrostatic gates. Here we induce zero-energy states into a semiconducting Kagome graphene by inserting π-radicals at selected locations. We utilize the on-surface reaction of tribromotrioxoazatriangulene molecules to synthesize carbonyl-functionalized Kagome graphene on Au(111), thereafter modified <i>in situ</i> by exposure to atomic hydrogen. Atomic force microscopy and tunneling spectroscopy unveil the stepwise chemical transformation of the carbonyl groups into radicals, which creates local magnetic defects of spin state <i>S</i> = 1/2 and zero-energy states as confirmed by density functional theory. The ability to imprint local magnetic moments opens up prospects to study the interplay between topology, magnetism, and electron correlation in Kagome graphene.
Authors
- Vincent Luzet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3963-6753)
- Frédéric Chérioux (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2906-0766)
- Ernst Meyer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6385-3412)
- Frank Palmino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4527-9570)
- L. Marot (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1529-9362)
- Jung‐Ching Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9472-3343)
- Outhmane Chahib
- P. Hiret (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2119-8648)
- Alain Rochefort (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1965-4421)
- Rémy Pawlak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8295-7241)
- Khalid N. Anindya (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6824-0081)
Institutions
- University of Basel (CH)
- Franche-Comté Électronique Mécanique Thermique et Optique - Sciences et Technologies (FR)
- Polytechnique Montréal (CA)
- Université de Franche-Comté (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ACS Nano
- Published
- 2025-01-10
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.4c15519
- Citations
- 10
- Primary Topic
- Graphene research and applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.18
Funders
- European Commission
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
- Fonds de recherche du Québec
- Alliance de recherche numérique du Canada
- Swiss Nanoscience Institute
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- H2020 European Research Council
- HORIZON EUROPE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions