Effect of tether conductivity on the efficiency of photoisomerization of azobenzene-functionalized molecules on Au{111}

Bala Krishna Pathem, Yue Bing Zheng, John L. Payton, Tze Bin Song, Byung Chan Yu, James M. Tour, Yang Yang, Lasse Jensen, Paul S. Weiss

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

23 Scopus citations

Abstract

We establish the role of tether conductivity on the photoisomerization of azobenzene-functionalized molecules assembled as isolated single molecules in well-defined decanethiolate self-assembled monolayer matrices on Au{111}. We designed the molecules so as to tune the conductivity of the tethers that separate the functional moiety from the underlying Au substrate. By employing surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, time-course measurements of surfaces assembled with azobenzene functionalized with different tether conductivities were independently studied under constant UV light illumination. The decay constants from the analyses reveal that photoisomerization on the Au{111} surface is reduced when the conductivity of the tether is increased. Experimental results are compared with density functional theory calculations performed on single molecules attached to Au clusters.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2388-2394
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Physical Chemistry Letters
Volume3
Issue number17
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 6 2012

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Materials Science
  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry

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