Strong magnetic exchange coupling of a dibenzo-fused rhomboidal nanographene and its homocoupling with tunable periodicities on a metal surface
Open-shell nanographenes (NGs), also known as molecular π-magnets, have recently garnered attention for their potential in spintronics and quantum computing. Tailoring of such NGs at the atomic level allows the control of their magnetic interactions. We report here the on-surface synthesis of a dibenzo-fused rhomboidal NG with predominant zigzag edges featuring an open-shell (antiferromagnetic) character and a high value of magnetic exchange coupling (MEC) on Au(111) surfaces. Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and noncontact atomic force microscopy (nc-AFM) confirm its chemical structure. Scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) measurements, complemented by state-of-the-art theoretical calculations, reveal the open-shell character of the NG, observed as singlet-triplet inelastic excitations. Furthermore, molecular chains consisting of these NGs were fabricated with tunable periodicities through the functionalization of the precursor, showing the absence of MEC between adjacent units, which provides deeper insights into the behavior of open-shell systems and preservation of individual magnetic entities within π-conjugated structures.
Authors
- Koen Lauwaet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1024-6779)
- José Ignacio Urgel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7608-2979)
- Rodolfo Miranda (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1064-6724)
- Elena Pérez‐Elvira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9584-3761)
- Pavel Jelı́nek (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5645-8542)
- Ana Barragán (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2570-5018)
- David Écija (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8661-8295)
- Akimitsu Narita (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3625-522X)
- Andrés Pinar Solé (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0880-8069)
- Goudappagouda Goudappagouda
- José M. Gallego (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1716-0126)
- Zhiqiang Gao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7161-1536)
- Manish Kumar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-7813-5209)
- Alba García‐Frutos
- Diego Soler-Polo
Institutions
- Madrid Institute for Advanced Studies (ES)
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (JP)
- Charles University (CZ)
- IMDEA Nanoscience (ES)
- Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid (ES)
- FZU ‒ Institute of Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (CZ)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nanoscale
- Published
- 2025-01-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1039/d5nr00957j
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Graphene research and applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.04
Funders
- Comunidad de Madrid
- Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades
- European Commission
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Ministerstvo Školství, Mládeže a Tělovýchovy
- Grantová Agentura České Republiky
- Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad
- Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University
- Akademie Věd České Republiky
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science