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AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsXiao-An Zhang, R Stanley Williams, Robert G Walmsley, Kent Vincent
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A molecular system is provided for electric field activated switches, such as a crossed-wire device or a pair of electrodes to which the molecular system is linked by linking moieties. The crossed-wire device comprises a pair of crossed wires that form a junction where one wire crosses another at an angle other than zero degrees and at least one connector species connecting the pair of crossed wires in the junction. The connector species comprises the molecular system, which has an electric field induced band gap change, and thus a change in its electrical conductivity, that occurs via one a molecular conformation change, based on a rotor/stator construction of the molecular system, involving a rotating portion (rotor) connected between to stationary portions (stators). Nanometer-scale reversible electronic switches are thus provided that can be assembled easily to make cross-bar circuits, which provide memory, logic, and communication functions.
A bi-stable molecular mechanical device comprising a molecular system configured within an electric field generated by a pair of electrodes and electrically connected thereto, said molecular system having one rotor portion connected between two stator portions, wherein said rotor portion rotates with respect to said stator portions between at least two different states upon application of said electric field, thereby inducing a band gap change in said molecular system, wherein in a first state, there is extended conjugation over at least most of said molecular system, resulting in a relatively smaller band gap, and wherein in a second state, said extended conjugation is changed, resulting in a relatively larger band gap, wherein at least one of said rotor portion and said stator portion include one or more bulky groups that create steric repulsion to prevent said rotor portion from rotating through a complete 180 degree half cycle.
A bi-stable molecular system having one rotor portion connected between two stator portions, wherein said rotor portion rotates with respect to said stator portions between at least two different states upon application of said electric field, thereby inducing a band gap change in said molecular system, wherein in a first state, there is substantial extended conjugation throughout said molecular system, resulting in a relatively smaller band gap, and wherein in a second state, said extended conjugation is changed, resulting in a relatively larger band gap, wherein at least one of said rotor portion and said stator portion include one or more bulky groups that create steric repulsion to prevent said rotor portion from rotating through a complete 180 degree half cycle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.