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Science 24 July 1998:
Vol. 281. no. 5376, pp. 531 - 533
DOI: 10.1126/science.281.5376.531
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Reports

Rotation of a Single Molecule Within a Supramolecular Bearing

J. K. Gimzewski, * C. Joachim, R. R. Schlittler, V. Langlais, H. Tang, I. Johannsen

Experimental visualization and verification of a single-molecule rotor operating within a supramolecular bearing is reported. Using a scanning tunneling microscope, single molecules were observed to exist in one of two spatially defined states laterally separated by 0.26 nanometers. One was identified as a rotating state and the other as an immobilized state. Calculations of the energy barrier for rotation of these two states show that it is below the thermal energy at room temperature for the rotating state and above it for the immobilized state.

J. K. Gimzewski, R. R. Schlittler, V. Langlais, IBM Research Division, Zurich Research Laboratory, Säumerstrasse 4, 8803 Rüschlikon, Switzerland. C. Joachim and H. Tang, CEMES-CNRS, 29 rue J. Marvig, Boîte Postale 4347, 31055 Toulouse Cedex, France. I. Johannsen, Risø National Laboratory, Condensed Matter Physics and Chemistry Department, Post Office Box 49, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: gim{at}zurich.ibm.com

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