FWF Einzelprojekt
Destructive quantum interference in electron transport through graphene nanoribbons
FWF Project No. P31631
Host institution: Vienna University of Technology — Vienna (Austria)
Funding period: 09/2019 - 05/2023
Grant funding researchers working in Austria, including personnel costs. Link to FWF page [link].
Aim of the Project
Due to the large changes in its conductivity upon adsorption, graphene has been proposed as a gas- and bio-sensor, and even for DNA base sequence analysis. There are two major challenges for their further development: (i) The mechanism on which the gas sensing is based is not very well understood, and sometimes several competing theoretical explanations exist (ii) thin graphene films show great sensitivity to many different types of adsorbates and thus it is not chemically selective. Both problems can be overcome in atomically well-defined graphene nanostructures. We propose quantum interference (QI) as a novel paradigm for the detection mechanism. In particular, we suggest exploiting destructive QI to yield a strong chemiresistive response upon weak changes to the environment, thus enhancing sensitivity and selectivity to molecular adsorbates. This project aims to systematically investigate the relationship between the adsorption and the electron transport properties of junctions with graphene functional blocks exhibiting QI effects.
Openings
Ph.D. fellowship [link] — position filled
Human Resources
Project Manager: R. Stadler (applicant)
Investigators: A. Valli
Ph. D. Students: Ö. Şengül
Project Students: J. Völkle, S. Tkaczyk, M. Völkl
Collaborators: F. Libisch (TU Wien), J. Bintinger (AIT, LOE Linköping), G. Gandus (EMPA, ETH Zürich)
Achievements
07/2023 Ph. D. Graduation: Ö. Şengül
07/2020 Travel Grant: Ö. Şengül
Fee waiving for Graphene 2020 — sponsor: UGA/Foundation Nanosciences/La Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Publications | acknowledging the project funds
Stability of destructive quantum interference antiresonances in electron transport through graphene nanostructures
A. Valli, T. Fabian, F. Libisch, and R. Stadler
Carbon 214, 118358 (2023) [elsevier][arXiv] open-accessResistance saturation in semi-conducting polyacetylene molecular wires
A. Valli and J. M. Tomczak
J. Comput. Electron. 22, 1363–1376 (2023) [springer] [researchsquare] open-accessNematic spectral signatures of the Hund's metal
L. Fanfarillo, A. Valli, and M. Capone
Phys. Rev. B 107, L081114 (2023) [APS] [arXiv]Enhancing the sensitivity and selectivity of pyrene-based sensors for detection of small gaseous molecules via destructive quantum interference
Ö. Şengül, J. Völkle, A. Valli, and R. Stadler
Phys. Rev. B 105, 165428 (2022) [APS] [arXiv]Electrode effects on the observability of destructive quantum interference in single-molecule junctions
Ö. Şengül, A. Valli, and R. Stadler
Nanoscale 13, 17011–17021 (2021) [RSC] [arXiv]Designing a mechanically driven spin-crossover molecular switch via organic embedding
S. Bhandary, J. M. Tomczak, and A. Valli
Nanoscale Adv. 3, 4990–4995 (2021) [RSC] [arXiv] open-accessLong-lived charged states of single porphyrin-tape junctions under ambient conditions
E. Leary, G. Kastlunger, B. Limburg, L. Rincón-García, J. Hurtado-Gallego, M. T. González, G. Rubio Bollinger, N. Agraït, S. J. Higgins, H. L. Anderson, R. Stadler and R. J. Nichols
Nanoscale Horiz. 6, 49–58 (2021) [RSC]Smart local orbitals for efficient calculations within density functional theory and beyond
G. Gandus, A. Valli, D. Passerone, and R. Stadler
J. Chem. Phys. 153, 194103 (2020) [AIP] [arXiv]Boson Exchange Parquet Solver for dual fermions
F. Krien, A. Valli, P. Chalupa, M. Capone, A. I. Lichtenstein, and A. Toschi
Phys. Rev. B 102, 195131 (2020) [APS] [arXiv]Kondo screening in Co adatoms with full Coulomb interaction
A. Valli, M. P. Bahlke, A. Kowalski, M. Karolak, C. Herrmann, and G. Sangiovanni
Phys. Rev. Research 2, 033432 (2020) [APS] [arXiv] open-access
