Spectroscopy of Mn12 with modified ligands on graphene bolometers

Single molecule magnets (SMMs), metal-ion complexes that exhibit quantum behavior at low temperatures, have promising applications in quantum computing and molecular spintronics. The interfacial interactions between SMM ligands and surfaces can substantially alter the SMM properties. By combining SMMs with graphene, we can create hybrid materials with emergent properties that give them even greater potential. But graphene can also serve as a way to probe the properties of the SMMs. Graphene and SMM derivatives of Mn12 with modified CHCl2 carboxylate ligands have previously been combined to study the effects of charge transfer on the electronic transport properties of the decorated graphene^[1]. We combined these Mn12 derivatives with highly sensitive, ultra-broadband photodetectors fabricated from graphene^[2] to conduct electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of the SMMs.

Reference
1. Zhu, X., Hale, A., Christou, G. & Hebard, A. F. Electronegative ligands enhance charge transfer to Mn12 single-molecule magnets deposited on graphene. J. Appl. Phys. 127, 64303 (2020).
2. St Marie, L. et al. Nanostructured graphene for nanoscale electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. J. Phys. Mater. 3, 014013 (2020).