Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference:	GR/S84057/01
Title:	Basic Technology: Controlled electron transport through single molecules
Principal Investigator:	Lambert, Professor C
Other Investigators:
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:	QinetiQ
Department:	Physics
Organisation:	Lancaster University
Scheme:	Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts:	01 October 2004	Ends:	30 September 2008	Value (£):	237,799
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:	Electronic Devices & Subsys. Physical Organic Chemistry Surfaces & Interfaces
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:	Electronics
Related Grants:	GR/S84071/02 GR/S84064/01
Panel History:
Summary on Grant Application Form
The consortium involving chemists, device physicists and theorists will unite activities in chemical synthesis, deposition of molecules onto surfaces, device design and fabrication, and material-specific modelling. We thereby aim to develop the basic technology for reliably probing and controlling transport through single molecules. This technology will not only extend our understanding of a range of fundamental problems at the interface between physics and chemistry, but also will underpin the transition to nanoscale electronics. More specifically, the proposed research involves the following inter-related work packages: 1) The synthesis of new classes of organic molecules with controlled electronic properties, imparted by virtue of extended 7r-conjugation of precisely-defined length, and the incorporation of electron donor and electron acceptor segments. We propose to synthesise fundamentally new classes of rectifying molecules which will allow us to probe and control the cross-over to more familiar semiconductor electronics within a single molecule. 2) The fabrication and detailed electrical characterisation of self-assembled arrays of these molecules on metal electrodes. Key techniques to be used include non-centrosymmetric alignment ; STM studies; fabrication of novel mushroom necklace device structures; gating gold nanoparticle-capped structures. These measurements will enable us to probe the fundamental physics of molecular-scale transport. 3) Reliable simulation and design techniques will be developed for material-specific prediction of transport through single-molecules in contact with metal electrodes and related hybrid structures.
Key Findings
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Further Information:
Organisation Website:	http://www.lancs.ac.uk