arXiv subjects

Nicolò Bassi

Publications and source records attributed to Nicolò Bassi.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

One-dimensional carbon nanostructures with periodic graphitic nitrogen substitution

Heteroatom substitution is a powerful route to tune the chemical and electronic properties of carbon nanomaterials. In particular, replacement of an sp2 hybridized carbon atom in the graphene lattice with a nitrogen atom (denoted as graphitic nitrogen) induces substantial changes in the electronic properties. These include changes in the band structure that can influence electronic transport, and magnetism. A key requirement for applications is both the periodic and precise incorporation of the heteroatoms in extended carbon lattices. Here, we report the on-surface synthesis and characterization of two one dimensional carbon nanostructures, a polymer and a graphene nanoribbon, consisting of periodically incorporated graphitic nitrogen atoms. The on-surface reactions toward formation of the nanostructures were monitored by scanning tunneling microscopy. The bond-resolved chemical structures of the reaction intermediates and products were investigated by atomic force microscopy, which enabled atomic-scale visualization of the graphitic nitrogen sites. The electronic properties of the nanostructures were studied by scanning tunneling spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations. Our analyses revealed the presence of localized nitrogen-centered electronic states. In the gas phase where the nanostructures are in a neutral charge state, these states undergo spin polarization leading to an open-shell ground state. Upon adsorption on Au(111), the nanostructures exhibit electron transfer to the surface, which resulted in a closed-shell ground state. Our results demonstrate a straightforward and generally applicable route to synthesize graphitic nitrogen-substituted carbon nanomaterials with potential applications in spintronics, catalysis and energy storage.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Optimized Synthesis and Device Integration of Long 17-Atom-Wide Armchair Graphene Nanoribbons

Seventeen-carbon-atom-wide armchair graphene nanoribbons (17-AGNRs) are promising candidates for high-performance electronic devices due to their narrow electronic bandgap. Atomic precision in edge structure and width control is achieved through a bottom-up on-surface synthesis (OSS) approach from tailored molecular precursors in ultra-high vacuum (UHV). This synthetic protocol must be optimized to meet the structural requirements for device integration, with ribbon length being the most critical parameter. Here, we report optimized OSS conditions that produce 17-AGNRs with an average length of approximately 17 nm. This length enhancement is achieved through a gradual temperature ramping during an extended annealing period, combined with a template-like effect driven by monomer assembly at high surface coverage. The resulting 17-AGNRs are comprehensively characterized in UHV using scanning probe techniques and Raman spectroscopy. Raman measurements following substrate transfer enabled the characterization of the length distribution of GNRs on the device substrate and confirmed their stability under ambient conditions and harsh chemical environments, including acid vapors and etchants. The increased length and ambient stability of the 17-AGNRs lead to their reliable integration into device architectures. As a proof of concept, we integrate 17-AGNRs into field-effect transistors (FET) with graphene electrodes and confirm that electronic transport occurs through the GNRs. This work demonstrates the feasibility of integrating narrow-bandgap GNRs into functional devices and contributes to advancing the development of carbon-based nanoelectronics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Sensing a magnetic rare-earth surface alloy by proximity effect with an open-shell nanographene

Open-shell nanographenes have attracted significant attention due to their structurally tunable spin ground state. While most characterization has been conducted on weakly-interacting substrates such as noble metals, the influence of magnetic surfaces remains largely unexplored. In this study, we investigate how TbAu2, a rare-earth-element-based surface alloy, affects the magnetic properties of phenalenyl (or [2]triangulene (2T)), the smallest spin-1/2 nanographene. Scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) measurements reveal a striking contrast: while 2T on Au(111) exhibits a zero-bias Kondo resonance - a hallmark of a spin-1/2 impurity screened by the conduction electrons of the underlying metal - deposition on TbAu2 induces a symmetric splitting of this feature by approximately 20 mV. We attribute this splitting to a strong proximity-induced interaction with the ferromagnetic out-of-plane magnetization of TbAu2. Moreover, our combined experimental and first-principles analysis demonstrates that this interaction is spatially modulated, following the periodicity of the TbAu2 surface superstructure. These findings highlight that TbAu2 serves as a viable platform for stabilizing and probing the magnetic properties of spin-1/2 nanographenes, opening new avenues for the integration of {\pi}-magnetic materials with magnetic substrates.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

Electronic decoupling and hole-doping of graphene nanoribbons on metal substrates by chloride intercalation

Atomically precise graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) have a wide range of electronic properties that depend sensitively on their chemical structure. Several types of GNRs have been synthesized on metal surfaces through selective surface-catalyzed reactions. The resulting GNRs are adsorbed on the metal surface, which may lead to hybridization between the GNR orbitals and those of the substrate. This makes investigation of the intrinsic electronic properties of GNRs more difficult, and also rules out capacitive gating. Here we demonstrate the formation of a dielectric gold chloride adlayer that can intercalate underneath GNRs on the Au(111) surface. The intercalated gold chloride adlayer electronically decouples the GNRs from the metal and leads to a substantial hole doping of the GNRs. Our results introduce an easily accessible tool in the in situ characterization of GNRs grown on Au(111) that allows for exploration of their electronic properties in a heavily hole-doped regime.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Structural, Electronic, and Vibrational Properties of 2D Graphdiyne-Like Carbon Nanonetwork Synthesized on Au(111): Implications for the Engineering of sp-sp2 Carbon Nanostructures

Graphdiyne, atomically-thin 2D carbon nanostructure based on sp-sp2 hybridization, is an appealing system potentially showing outstanding mechanical and optoelectronic properties. Surface-catalyzed coupling of halogenated sp-carbon-based molecular precursors represents a promising bottom-up strategy to fabricate extended 2D carbon systems with engineered structure on metallic substrates. Here, we investigate the atomic-scale structure and electronic and vibrational properties of an extended graphdiyne-like sp-sp2 carbon nanonetwork grown on Au(111) by means of on-surface synthesis. The formation of such 2D nanonetwork at its different stages as a function of the annealing temperature after the deposition is monitored by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), Raman spectroscopy and combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations. High-resolution STM imaging and the high sensitivity of Raman spectroscopy to the bond nature provide a unique strategy to unravel the atomic-scale properties of sp-sp2 carbon nanostructures. We show that hybridization between the 2D carbon nanonetwork and the underlying substrate states strongly affects its electronic and vibrational properties, modifying substantially the density of states and the Raman spectrum compared to the free standing system. This opens the way to the modulation of the electronic properties with significant prospects in future applications as active nanomaterials for catalysis, photoconversion and carbon-based nanoelectronics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗