Conductivity Measurements of Few Molecule Systems in Metal-Molecule-Metal device Structures

In this paper, we have developed a technique for realizing ultraflat Au using a procedure that should be compatible with microfabricating techniques. We have applied the resulting Au layers in both lateral (few molecule) and vertical (many molecules) molecular electronic device structures. The lateral and vertical device structures are both enabled by the process for realizing ultraflat Au layer. The availability of two molecular test beds provides the ability to compare molecular conduction properties in different local environments. Experiments are in progress to compare conduction properties of various molecular species in the two test beds