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Chemistry

Tips for moving single molecules

Nature volume 423, pages 488–489 (2003)Cite this article

Scanning tunnelling microscopes provide a unique perspective on chemistry at the level of single molecules. Now there is a new way of using the tip of such a microscope to manipulate a single molecule.

In nature, reactants can be transformed into products through a vast array of mechanisms. In synthetic chemistry, progress hinges on finding a way to maximize the yield of the desired target molecule while minimizing the generation of unwanted by-products. In the same way that a golfer anticipates the terrain of the green when putting, chemists aim to control the chemical dynamics of a reaction, guiding the participating molecules along a specific path. On page 525 of this issue, Pascual et al.1 demonstrate how a scanning tunnelling microscope can be used to control the excitations of a single molecule and achieve a desired reaction path.

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Figure 1: Moving molecules.

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  1. the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, 46556, Indiana, USA

    Dennis C. Jacobs

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  1. Dennis C. Jacobs
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Correspondence to Dennis C. Jacobs.

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Jacobs, D. Tips for moving single molecules. Nature 423, 488–489 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/423488a

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/423488a

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