Thermopower in Underpotential Deposition-Based Molecular Junctions.
Nano Lett
; 24(6): 1988-1995, 2024 Feb 14.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38270106
ABSTRACT
Underpotential deposition (UPD) is an intriguing means for tailoring the interfacial electronic structure of an adsorbate at a substrate. Here we investigate the impact of UPD on thermoelectricity occurring in molecular tunnel junctions based on alkyl self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). We observed noticeable enhancements in the Seebeck coefficient of alkanoic acid and alkanethiol monolayers, by up to 2- and 4-fold, respectively, upon replacement of a conventional Au electrode with an analogous bimetallic electrode, Cu UPD on Au. Quantum transport calculations indicated that the increased Seebeck coefficients are due to the UPD-induced changes in the shape or position of transmission resonances corresponding to gateway orbitals, which depend on the choice of the anchor group. Our work unveils UPD as a potent means for altering the shape of the tunneling energy barrier at the molecule-electrode contact of alkyl SAM-based junctions and hence enhancing thermoelectric performance.
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MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Nano Lett
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article