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Our ability to manipulate atoms and molecules on an individual basis has opened a new experimental frontier that makes feasible the quest for single molecular-scale devices as successors to the transistor. Here we discuss our realization of the first amplifier using a single fullerene molecule less than 1~nm in diameter as the active element. This C(60) molecular device works by electromechanical modulation of virtual resonance quantum mechanical tunneling. The equivalent of the grid is achieved by the purely mechanical action of compressing the C(60) cage voltage. This action reversibly changes the internal electronic structure of the molecule, increasing its conductance in a continuous manner. The first embodiment provides experimental verification with a measured voltage gain of 5. The implications of these results indicate a new approach to electronics on the nanoscale, working in a new transport regime for the three-terminal devices. Going beyond these experiments, we discuss possible approaches to creating single-molecule devices and the advantages they promise.
By: C. Joachim and J. K. Gimzewski
Published in: IEEE Proceedings, volume 8, (no 1), pages 184-90 in 1998
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