Enhanced differential conductance through light induced current switching in Mn12 acetate molecular junctions

Abstract

The authors have observed through electrical transport measurements enhanced differential conductance (G=dI∕dV), up to 2e2∕h (∼77μA∕V), through the Mn12O12(O2CCH3)16(H2O)4∙2CH3COOH∙4H2O: “Mn12–Ac” molecule. At room temperature, under optical illumination, electrical switching, accompanied by a 60-fold increase of G through Mn12–Ac, was seen. The temperature dependence of G was used to determine the activation energy for molecular conduction to be ∼0.4eV. Their results provide evidence for the possible use of Mn12–Ac as a conducting wire, in addition to its proposed utility for information storage, for implementing multifunctional molecular electronics.