Researchers from the University of Florence, Italy have managed to bound a single molecule magnet (SMM) to a gold surface, whilst retaining the magnet's properties. in SMMs, each single molecule can be individually magnetized, but the magnetization of the individual molecules is dictated by its orientation - which is difficult to control. The new method can be used to adopt an orientation in a monolayer.
This achievement can be useful for Spintronics, and also for testing ideas using quantum physics.
Posted: Oct 28,2010 by Ron Mertens