Complete deciphering of the dynamic stereostructures of a single aggregation-induced emission molecule

Abstract

<h2>Summary</h2> The realization of functional molecular devices is inseparable from deep understanding of the intrinsic structure-property relationship of molecules. However, due to limited detection sensitivity and temporal resolution of current methods, there are rare reports on fully probing <i>in situ</i> dynamic changes of the molecular stereostructures at the single-molecule level in real time. Here, we present a complete deciphering of the dynamic stereostructures of a single aggregation-induced emission molecule using molecular junctions, which are capable of executing rapid real-time electrical measurements to achieve the unprecedented electrical mapping, thus feeding back the dynamic changes of the molecular stereostructures. Experimental and theoretical investigation consistently verify the intramolecular motions under electric field and the isomerization dynamics with strong temperature and electric field dependence, offering new insights into the development of ultra-sensitive devices. We anticipate that further integration of optical measurements with this approach will enable sophisticated synchronous monitoring of broad single-molecule photochemistry and photophysics.