Journal
CHEMICAL SCIENCE
Volume 13, Issue 19, Pages 5734-5740Publisher
ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY
DOI: 10.1039/d2sc01077a
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Funding
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinscha. (DFG, German Research Foundation) [EXC-2193/1 ~ 390951807, HU 997/13-1]
- Max Planck Society
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In this study, stereographic force spectroscopy was established to investigate the single-bond strength at different pulling angles. The results showed that the bond strength increased with increasing pulling angle, indicating a mechanical anisotropy of the chemical bond.
A wealth of chemical bonds and polymers have been studied with single-molecule force spectroscopy, usually by applying a force perpendicular to the anchoring surface. However, the direction-dependence of the bond strength lacks fundamental understanding. Here we establish stereographic force spectroscopy to study the single-bond strength for various pulling angles. Surprisingly, we find that the apparent bond strength increases with increasing pulling angle relative to the anchoring surface normal, indicating a sturdy mechanical anisotropy of a chemical bond. This finding can be rationalized by a fixed pathway for the rupture of the bond, resulting in an effective projection of the applied pulling force onto a nearly fixed rupture direction. Our study is fundamental for the molecular understanding of the role of the direction of force application in molecular adhesion and friction. It is also a prerequisite for the nanoscale tailoring of the anisotropic strength of bottom-up designed materials.
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