(ScienceDaily) Professor Emanuele Orgiu, a researcher at at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS) and McGill University, and a specialist in quantum materials whose research focuses on creating patterns on the surface of quantum materials in order to alter their properties. “The shape of the drawings helps determine the properties imparted upon the surface,” he explains.
His work has potential applications for (opto)electronic devices such as transistors and photosensors, but also for biosensing devices. The quantum materials expert has just taken a big step forward by synthesizing macrocycles — large circular molecules — on a graphite surface. This material consists of a stack of graphene, a single atom-thick sheet of carbon. Graphene is considered a quantum material.
Orgiu said the shape and size of macrocycles made them the ideal candidate to draw on the graphite’s surface. “The advantage of these molecules is the large pores in their structure. We may eventually be able to use our macrocycles as a frame and decorate the pores with biomolecules that would promote biosensing properties of the surface. This is certainly one of our next steps for future projects.”
Using Molecules to Draw on Quantum Materials
