Mario Italo Trioni

Atomic-scale characterization of nitrogen-doped graphite: Effects of dopant nitrogen on the local electronic structure of the surrounding carbon atoms

We report on the local atomic and electronic structures of a nitrogen-doped graphite surface by scanning tunneling microscopy, scanning tunneling spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and first-principles calculations. The nitrogen-doped graphite was prepared by nitrogen ion bombardment followed by thermal annealing. Two types of nitrogen species were identified at the atomic level: pyridinic-N (N bonded to two C nearest neighbors) and graphitic-N (N bonded to three C nearest neighbors). Distinct electronic states of localized π states were found to appear in the occupied and unoccupied regions near the Fermi level at the carbon atoms around pyridinic-N and graphitic-N species, respectively. The origin of these states is discussed based on experimental results and theoretical simulations.

Conductance of a photochromic molecular switch with graphene leads

We report a full self-consistent ab initio calculation of the conductance of a diarylethene-based molecular switch with two graphene electrodes. Our result show the contributions of the resonant states of the molecule, of the electrode density of states, and of graphene unique features such as edge states. The conductivities are found to be significantly different for the two photochromic isomers at zero and finite applied bias. Further we point out the possibility of causing the switching by the application of a large potential difference between the two electrodes. Organic electronics has rapidly grown into a fundamental field whose potential is still to be fully developed and exploited. Research focuses on novel functional organic materials and existing applications already comprise, among others, nanoscale electronic devices such as thin film transistors and diodes, solar cells, integrated circuits on flexible substrates, carbon nanotube field effect transistors and molecular switches. A promising class of organic molecular-scale photoswitching units is provided by photochromic molecules which are able to switch between two chemical structures when irradiated by light of appropriate wavelengths. Such states correspond to photochemically interconvertible isomers [1].

Density functional theory study of magnetic coupling in the Gd12O18 cluster.

The magnetic properties of the Gd(12)O(18) cluster cut from the bulk Gd(2)O(3) crystal are investigated using the spin-polarized density functional theory within the broken-symmetry approach. Our work reveals that in the ground state of the cluster the antiferromagnetic coupling between adjacent Gd (4f(7)) spins is preferred energetically. This result is in contrast to a recent prediction made by Pedersen and Ojamae (Pedersen, H.; Ojamae, L. Nano Lett. 2006, 6, 2004) but is consistent with recent experimental observations. The optimized structures of the cluster in the lowest-energy broken-symmetry state and the highest-spin ferromagnetic state are almost identical. The latter state is 71.5 cm(-1) higher in energy than the former one, giving a value of about -0.24 cm(-1) for the magnetic coupling constant, which is comparable to that estimated from experiments on the bulk crystal. The relative energies of various 4f(7) spin patterns of the cluster are calculated, and certain characteristics of the cluster in the lowest-energy broken-symmetry state are discussed.

Transport properties of armchair graphene nanoribbon junctions between graphene electrodes

The transmission properties of armchair graphene nanoribbon junctions between graphene electrodes are investigated by means of first-principles quantum transport calculations. First the dependence of the transmission function on the size of the nanoribbon has been studied. Two regimes are highlighted: for a small applied bias transport takes place via tunneling and the length of the ribbon is the key parameter that determines the junction conductance; at a higher applied bias resonant transport through the HOMO and LUMO starts to play a more determinant role, and the transport properties depend on the details of the geometry (width and length) of the carbon nanoribbon. In the case of the thinnest ribbon it has been verified that a tilted geometry of the central phenyl ring is the most stable configuration. As a consequence of this rotation the conductance decreases due to the misalignment of the π orbitals between the phenyl ring and the remaining part of the junction. All the computed transmission functions have shown a negligible dependence on different saturations and reconstructions of the edges of the graphene leads, suggesting a general validity of the reported results.

Spin-polarized charge transfer induced by transition metal adsorption on graphene

The electronic properties of transition metal atoms adsorbed on a graphene sheet are analyzed in the framework of the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM). Particular attention is devoted to the spin dependence of the charge rearrangement upon the adsorption of magnetic adatoms. A comparison between the band structures and the charges in the atomic basins makes it possible to shed light on the different roles that the spin components play in the bond formation. This aspect is likely to be crucial in determining the spin-dependent properties required in spintronics applications and could help in tailoring them. We found that for early (Sc, Ti, and V) and late (Fe, Co) transition metals the two spin populations behave very differently, being involved in the bonding only the majority or the minority spin component for the lighter and heavier adsorbates, respectively. We expect that the response properties, in particular those related to the states at the Fermi level, will be very different for the two spin components. As a by-product of our study it becomes apparent that the QTAIM analysis is not the most suitable tool for catching the charge transfer phenomenon in the case of weakly interacting electronic populations.

Electronic transport in B-N substituted bilayer graphene nanojunctions

We investigated a suspended bilayer graphene where the bottom/top layer is doped by boron/nitrogen substitutional atoms. By using density functional theory calculations, we found that at high dopant concentration (one B-N pair every 32 C atoms), the electronic structure of the bilayer does not depend on the B-N distance but on the relative occupation of the bilayer graphene sublattices by B and N. The presence of the dopants and the consequent charge transfer establish a built-in electric field between the layers, giving rise to an energy gap. We further investigated the electronic transport properties and found that intralayer current is weakly influenced by the presence of these dopants while the interlayer one is enhanced for biases, allowing an easy tunneling between layers. This effect leads to current rectification in asymmetric junctions.

Magnetic Moments and Electron Transport through Chromium-based Antiferromagnetic Nanojunctions

We report the electronic, magnetic and transport properties of a prototypical antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronic device. We chose Cr as the active layer because it is the only room-temperature AFM elemental metal. We sandwiched Cr between two non-magnetic metals (Pt or Au) with large spin-orbit coupling. We also inserted a buffer layer of insulating MgO to mimic the structure and finite resistivity of a real device. We found that, while spin-orbit has a negligible effect on the current flowing through the device, the MgO layer plays a crucial role. Its effect is to decouple the Cr magnetic moment from Pt (or Au) and to develop an overall spin magnetization. We have also calculated the spin-polarized ballistic conductance of the device within the Büttiker–Landauer framework, and we have found that for small applied bias our Pt/Cr/MgO/Pt device presents a spin polarization of the current amounting to ≃25%.

Enhanced magnetic hybridization of a spinterface through insertion of a two-dimensional magnetic oxide layer

Interfaces between organic semiconductors and ferromagnetic metals offer intriguing opportunities in the rapidly developing field of organic spintronics. Understanding and controlling the spin-polarized electronic states at the interface is the key toward a reliable exploitation of this kind of systems. Here we propose an approach consisting in the insertion of a two-dimensional magnetic oxide layer at the interface with the aim of both increasing the reproducibility of the interface preparation and offering a way for a further fine control over the electronic and magnetic properties. We have inserted a two-dimensional Cr4O5 layer at the C60/Fe(001) interface and have characterized the corresponding morphological, electronic, and magnetic properties. Scanning tunneling microscopy and electron diffraction show that the film grows well-ordered both in the monolayer and multilayer regimes. Electron spectroscopies confirm that hybridization of the electronic states occurs at the interface. Finally, magnetic dichroism in X-ray absorption shows an unprecedented spin-polarization of the hybridized fullerene states. The latter result is discussed also in light of an ab initio theoretical analysis.