Keywords

Charge transport; Molecular junctions; Organic devices; Rectification; Electrical switches

Abstract

As electrical devices shrink to the atomic scale, it is expected that Moore's law will soon be obsolete for semiconductor devices. In 1974, Avriam and Ratner predicted that organic devices could replace semiconductor technology, leading to extensive research on molecular-based organic devices. This dissertation delves into the theoretical frameworks used to examine the transport in molecular junctions and aims to enhance our comprehension of charge transport and conduction properties. The studies presented in this thesis illustrates that a molecule's alteration by just a single atom can change it from an insulator to a conductor, and also that, by fine-tuning the molecule-electrode coupling strength and the tunneling distance in a molecular junction, the mechanism of charge transport across molecular wires can be switched between the normal and Inverted Marcus regions. The dissertation also presents molecular devices that function as reliable electrical switches, both static and dynamic. The findings of this research provide evidence of the feasibility of organic devices, including rectifiers and switches, with applications ranging from traditional semiconductor device replacement to neuromorphic computing.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2023

Semester

Summer

Advisor

Del Barco, Enrique

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Physics

Degree Program

Physics

Identifier

CFE0009681; DP0027788

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0027788

Language

English

Release Date

August 2023

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Open Access)

Subjects

Molecular electronics; Organic semiconductors; Organic electronics; Molecular integrated circuits; Electric conductivity--Research

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