Single molecules may be viewed as the ultimate electronic component. Despite recent achievements, much work remains to be done in order to understand and master such systems.
These devices may be viewed as a cornerstone for the future development of information technologies and should present many advantages in terms of miniaturization, power consumption, speed and multifunctionality.
However, it is now widely believed that the practical realization of such devices will mix top-down and bottom-up techniques in order to assemble nanoscale hybrid objects and connect them to the macroscopic world.
The aim in this project is to enhance synergies between research teams working in these fields at the Université de Strasbourg and the Karlsruher Institute of Technology. Research thrusts will include the chemical synthesis of functionalized and multifunctional molecules, their organization on surfaces, the fabrication of hybrid nanostructures via different methods (chemical, autoorganization, lithography…), the imaging of nanostructures at the nano- and atomic-scales, toward the study of their physical properties (magnetism, electronic structure, electron transport…) with a focus on interface effects.
In order to fulfill this goal, the consortium will gather about 20 research teams from both sites with international visibility and will take advantage of their pluridisciplinarity (physics, chemistry, experiment, theory), which is an essential aspect of the field. An important motivation of the graduate school is also to train a new generation of scientists in this emerging field.
For this purpose, we wish to incite and develop collaborations and PhD thesis co-directions, organize an annual scientific school and a workshop so as to enable young scientists to present and discuss their most recent work and accomplish research training on high-level equipment.
