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O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik
O 46: Electron-Driven Processes at Surfaces and Interfaces
O 46.6: Talk
Wednesday, March 29, 2023, 11:45–12:00, CHE 91
Uni-directional translation of a novel adsorbate motor — •Grant J. Simpson1, Mats Persson2, and Leonhard Grill1 — 1University of Graz, Graz, Austria — 2University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
Molecular motors are fascinating objects that can undergo uni-directional motion on the nanoscale. In order to independently perform meaningful work, they typically must switch between two potential energy surfaces to achieve directed motion. However, their rather complex structures often mean that their function on a surface is hindered. Here, we present a novel 'adsorbate motor' which performs strictly uni-directional translational upon excitation from the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope - in contrast to thermally induced motion of the same molecules that follows the principle of microscopic reversibility, resulting in random movement. The resulting 100% uni-directionality is then harnessed in order to perform meaningful work exemplified by the transport of single molecules across a metal surface.