Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Charge-state transitions of a single Cu-phthalocyanine molecule adsorbed on an insulating layer of NaCl on Cu(111) are probed by means of alternate charging scanning tunneling microscopy. Real-space imaging of the electronic transitions reveals the Jahn-Teller distortion occurring upon formation of the first and second anionic charge states. The experimental findings are rationalized by a theoretical many-body model that highlights the crucial role played by the substrate. The latter enhances and stabilizes the intrinsic Jahn-Teller distortion of the negatively charged molecule hosting a degenerate pair of single-particle frontier orbitals. Consequently, two excess electrons are found to occupy, in the ground state, the same localized orbital, despite a larger Coulomb repulsion than the one for the competing delocalized electronic configuration. Control over the charging sequence by varying the applied bias voltage is also predicted.
Source: Physical Review Letters
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,750
Awards: G1175115578, G2221046033, G2262748287, G2350469352, G300979063, G304496, G3480869486, G425668148, G464105488, G5080475149, G5443056044, G5447843660, G5670727620, G5893643307, G6046981386, G7084143925, G7140330509, SFB 1277: Emergente relativistische Effekte in der Kondensierten Materie: Von grundlegenden Aspekten zu elektronischer Funktionalität
OpenAlex ID: W4409906728