Electron transport in single molecules and nanostructures

Abstract

Electron transport in nanoscale materials has attracted much attention with the fast development of the nanofabrication and scanning probe techniques in the past years. Quantum effects such as electron tunneling and quantum confinement effect have become predominant in nanostructures, leading to a diversity of novel transport phenomena. In particular, single electron tunneling (SET) effect, rectifying effect, negative differential resistance (NDR) effect, Kondo effect, and some novel mechanisms responsible for these effects were revealed in the electron transport properties of single atoms, molecules, and nanoparticles. These effects and mechanisms are found to result from the discrete energy levels and localized molecular orbitals in the nanostructures. Recent developments of the measurement techniques and progresses of the studies on electron transport in single molecules and related nanostructures are reviewed in this chapter.