Tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance via molecular π orbitals of Pb dimers

Abstract

Spin-orbit coupling (SOC) links spin space and real space and leads to solids with intriguing spin topologies and transport properties, such as anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR). The orientation of a real-space symmetry axis with respect to the spin direction determines the size of SOC-induced changes of the electronic structure. To show this effect at the single-molecule level, the authors arrange Pb dimers on a ferromagnetic Fe layer and observe that the AMR resulting from their molecular orbitals depends strongly on the dimer orientation.