Measuring fine molecular structures with luminescence signal from an alternating current scanning tunneling microscope

In scanning tunneling microscopy-induced luminescence (STML), the photon count is measured to reflect single-molecule properties, e.g., the first molecular excited state. The energy of the first excited state is typically shown by a rise of the photon count as a function of the bias voltage between the tip and the substrate. It remains a challenge to determine the precise rise position of the current due to possible experimental noise. In this work, we propose an alternating current version of STML to resolve the fine structures in the photon count measurement. The measured photon count and the current at the long-time limit show a sinusoidal oscillation. The zero-frequency component of the current shows knee points at the precise voltage as the fraction of the detuning between the molecular gap and the DC component of the bias voltage. We propose to measure the energy level with discontinuity of the first derivative of such a zero-frequency component. The current method will extend the application of STML in terms of measuring molecular properties.

Automated summary

In this work, an alternating current version of scanning tunneling microscopy-induced luminescence (STML) is proposed to resolve the fine structures in photon count measurement. By measuring the oscillation of photon count and current, the energy level can be determined, extending the application of STML.