59 results about "Molecular electronics" patented technology

The present invention generally relates to methods and apparatus for the synthesis or preparation of boron-doped single-walled carbon nanotubes (B-SWCNTs). The invention provides a high yield, single step method for producing large quantities of continuous macroscopic carbon fiber from single-wall carbon nanotubes using inexpensive carbon feedstocks wherein the carbon nanotubes are produced by in situ boron substitutional doping. In one embodiment, the nanotubes disclosed are used, singularly or in multiples, in power transmission cables, in solar cells, in batteries, as antennas, as molecular electronics, as probes and manipulators, and in composites. It is another object of this invention to provide macroscopic carbon fiber made by such a method.

An architecture for nanoscale electronics is disclosed. The architecture comprises arrays of crossed nanoscale wires having selectively programmable crosspoints. Nanoscale wires of one array are shared by other arrays, thus providing signal propagation between the arrays. Nanoscale signal restoration elements are also provided, allowing an output of a first array to be used as an input to a second array. Signal restoration occurs without routing of the signal to non-nanoscale wires.

A technique is provided for forming a molecule or an array of molecules having a defined orientation relative to the substrate or for forming a mold for deposition of a material therein. The array of molecules is formed by dispersing them in an array of small, aligned holes (nanopores), or mold, in a substrate. Typically, the material in which the nanopores are formed is insulating. The underlying substrate may be either conducting or insulating. For electronic device applications, the substrate is, in general, electrically conducting and may be exposed at the bottom of the pores so that one end of the molecule in the nanopore makes electrical contact to the substrate. A substrate such as a single-crystal silicon wafer is especially convenient because many of the process steps to form the molecular array can use techniques well developed for semiconductor device and integrated-circuit fabrication.

The invention provides for a novel dynamically configurable point-of-care device for clinical diagnostics and research for analysis of activity associated with pluripotent stem cells, tumor cells, drug metabolites, immunological response, glucose monitoring, cardiovascular diseases, liver cell therapy, cell-cell signaling, epidemic outbreaks, hospital based infectious diseases, pathogens, germ cells, pharmacological compounds, oxidation reduction, microscopy, tomography, flow cytometry, clinical lab testing, and for providing immunoassays, ELISA, electrophoresis, PCR, chromatography, and other laboratory functions. The device comprises a biochemical processing module further comprising a processor and at least one controller, receiving microfluidic elements, sensors, software scripts, an electrically operated interface, flow ports, a user interface, memory, and a communications link, configurable based on analysis of patient data. The invention further provides for multiple-criteria decision analysis for hospital administrators, a wearable device, mobile medical device, molecular electronics configuration, touchscreen recognition, data analytics application, and a drone delivery based point-of-care system.

The present invention generally relates to the fabrication of molecular electronics devices from molecular wires and Single Wall Nanotubes (SWNT). In one embodiment, the cutting of a SWNT is achieved by opening a window of small width by lithography patterning of a protective layer on top of the SWNT, followed by applying an oxygen plasma to the exposed SWNT portion. In another embodiment, the gap of a cut SWNT is reconnected by one or more difunctional molecules having appropriate lengths reacting to the functional groups on the cut SWNT ends to form covalent bonds. In another embodiment, the gap of a cut SWNT gap is filled with a self-assembled monolayer from derivatives of novel contorted hexabenzocoranenes. In yet another embodiment, a device based on molecular wire reconnecting a cut SWNT is used as a sensor to detect a biological binding event.

The invention discloses a rapid and high sensitive molecular biosensor and a method of single-molecule detection of DNA or protein using the molecular biosensor. The molecular biosensor disclosed herein comprises: a) at least a single-walled carbon nanotube transistor device, wherein, the single-walled carbon nanotube transistor device comprises a grid electrode, a source electrode, a drain electrode and a conducting channel, the conducting channel is a single-walled carbon nanotube which is cut into two sections to form two single-walled carbon nanotubes with a gap of 1-10 nm; and b) an aptamer, wherein, the terminals of the aptamer are modified by terminal amino groups, and the aptamer is connected with the two ends of the carbon nanotubes forming the gap through an amide bond. The method is a reliable and practical method with general applicability. According to the method, nano/molecular electronics and the biosystem are combined, and the direct and real-time detection of the activities of DNA or protein with single-minded selectivity and ultrahigh sensitivity is realized by using functionalized mono-molecular devices and electric signal measurement.

The invention provides a field effect transistor device by taking graphene as an electrode and a preparation method thereof. In the device, the material of a source region and a drain region is graphene; the materials of a channel region are various small organic molecules, high polymers and semiconducting polymer materials, such as polythiophene, pentacene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, perylene imide and the like; and the material of a gate region is highly doped conductive silicone. The device further comprises a gate dielectric layer the material of which is silicon dioxide, silicon nitride and various high-K dielectrics. The nano field effect transistor device can be n-typed, p-typed or amphoteric type, and the device realizes all functions of a macroscopic field effect transistor device at the nanometer level. The transistor device has very high application value in terms of ultrasensitive environmental stimuli response devices, ultrasensitive solar stimuli response devices and the like. In addition, in the fields of molecular electronics and nanometer, the transistor device plays an essential role of promoting the development of ultramicro photoelectric devices with various dimensions at molecular level.

Systems and methods for preparing inorganic-organic interfaces using transition metal coordination complexes and self-assembled monolayers as organic surfaces. In one embodiment, a silicon wafer supports a polycrystalline gold layer, optionally using an intermediate adhesionlayer such as Cr. The surface is reacted with the thiophene end of organic molecular species comprising a thiophene moiety to prepare self assembling monomers (SAMs). The functionalized end of the SAM is then reacted with metal-bearing species such as tetrakis(dimethylamido)titanium, Ti[N(CH₃)₂]₄, (TDMAT) to provide a titanium nitride layer.

A novel coordination chemistry or metal ion binding approach to controlling the site-isolation and orientation of virus particles, such as TMV, on a nanoarray template generated by lithography including Dip Pen Nanolithography. By using the surface chemistry that is inherent in many viruses, metal-ion based or inorganic coordination chemistry was used to immobilize individual virus particles without the need for their genetic modification. Single particle control will enable a wide variety of studies involving viruses that are not possible with microarrays because of the size mismatch between the architecture of the virus and the features that make up such arrays. These include: single particle, single cell infectivity studies, the exploration of such structures as templates in materials synthesis and molecular electronics, and studies aimed at understanding how surface presentation can influence their bioactivity. This is a pioneering example of such control at the single-particle level, and therefore, commercial use of nanoarrays in biological systems.

The present invention generally relates to the fabrication of molecular electronics devices from molecular wires and Single Wall Nanotubes (SWNT). In one embodiment, the cutting of a SWNT is achieved by opening a window of small width by lithography patterning of a protective layer on top of the SWNT, followed by applying an oxygen plasma to the exposed SWNT portion. In another embodiment, the gap of a cut SWNT is reconnected by one or more difunctional molecules having appropriate lengths reacting to the functional groups on the cut SWNT ends to form covalent bonds. In another embodiment, the gap of a cut SWNT gap is filled with a self-assembled monolayer from derivatives of novel contorted hexabenzocoranenes. In yet another embodiment, a device based on molecular wire reconnected a cut SWNT is used as a sensor to detect a biological binding event.

In one embodiment, the present invention relates to fluorescent nucleic acid constructs and methods of using these switchable constructs to rapidly screen for target molecule interactions. More particularly, an RNA/DNA chimera comprising a fluorophore-quencher pair and a nucleic acid construct is disclosed for the rapid screening of interactions between the HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein, NCp7, and a stem-loop region, SL3, of the HIV-1 RNA, or antagonists thereof. The compositions and methods disclosed herein can be used in preferred aspects of the present invention for diagnosing disease states, distinguishing the presence of infectious or toxic agents, drug discovery and design, and molecular electronic applications.

The invention relates to a molecular electronics arrangement comprising a substrate, at least one first strip conductor having a surface and being arranged in or on the substrate, a spacer which is arranged on the surface of the at least one first strip conductor and which partially covers the surface of the at least one first strip conductor, and at least one second strip conductor which is arranged on the spacer and comprises a surface which faces the surface of the at least one first strip conductor in a plane manner. The spacer partially covers the surface of the at least one second strip conductor, and defines a pre-determined distance between the at least one first strip conductor and the at least one second strip conductor. The inventive molecular electronics arrangement also comprises molecular electronics molecules which are arranged between a free region of the surface of the at least one first strip conductor and a free region of the surface of the at least one second strip conductor, the length of said molecules being essentially equal to the distance between the at least one first strip conductor and the at least one second strip conductor. The invention also relates to a method for producing a molecular electronics arrangement.

In various embodiments, an information storage system comprises: a writing device for synthesizing a nucleotide sequence that encodes a set of information; and a reading device for interpreting the nucleotide sequence by decoding the interpreted nucleotide sequence into the set of information, wherein the reading device comprises a molecular electronics sensor, the sensor comprising a pair of spaced apart electrodes and a molecular complex attached to each electrode to form a molecular electronics circuit, wherein the molecular complex comprises a bridge molecule and a probe molecule, and wherein the molecular electronics sensor produces distinguishable signals in a measurable electrical parameter of the molecular electronics sensor, when interpreting the nucleotide sequence.

The present invention specifically describes a new method for chemical modification of carbon nanotubes. Such methods involve the derivatization of multiwalled and single-walled carbon nanotubes, including small-diameter (about 0.7 nm) single-walled carbon nanotubes derivatized with diazo compounds. This method allows various organic compounds to be chemically attached to the sidewalls and ports of carbon nanotubes. Such chemically modified carbon nanotubes are used in polymer composites, molecular electronics and sensor elements. Derivatization methods include electrochemically induced reactions, thermally induced reactions (via in situ or pre-generated diazo compounds) and photochemically induced reactions. Derivatization significantly changes the spectral properties of the nanotubes. The functionality is estimated to be approximately one functional moiety for every 20-30 carbon atoms in the nanotube. Such electrochemical reduction methods can be used for site-selective chemical functionalization of nanotubes, and, after modification with appropriate chemical groups, derivatized nanotubes are chemically compatible with the polymer matrix, enabling nanotube properties (e.g., mechanical strength or conductivity) essentially translates into composite properties. Moreover, after modification of appropriate chemical genes, these chemical groups can be polymerized into polymers including carbon nanotubes.

A molecular quantum interference device for use in molecular electronics. In one embodiment, the device includes a molecular quantum interference unit having a first terminal group and a second terminal group between which quantum interference affects electrical conduction, a molecular spacer having a first terminal group and a second terminal group and coupled to the molecular quantum interference unit through a chemical bonding between the first terminal group of the molecular spacer and the second terminal group of the molecular quantum interference unit, a first electrode electrically coupled to the molecular quantum interference unit and configured to supply charge carriers to or receive charge carriers from the molecular quantum interference unit, and a second electrode electrically coupled to the molecular spacer and configured to receive charge carriers from or supply charge carriers to the molecular spacer.

The invention belongs to the micro machining field in microelectronics and molectronics, especially relating to a method for preparing nano cross line array structure organic molecular device, comprising the steps of: 1. depositing insulating film on substrate surface; 2. spin-coating electron beam resist on the insulating film surface, making electron beam exposure and developing to obtain lower electrode figure; 3. evaporating to prepare lower electrode metal; 4. peeling off the metal to obtain cross line lower electrode; 5. cover-grow organic molecular film on the lower electrode; 6. evaporating to prepare metal protection layer on the organic molecular film; 7. spin-coating double layers of photoetching glue on the protection layer, and making electron beam exposure and developing to obtain upper electrode figure; 8. slantingly evaporating to prepare upper electrode metal film; 9. peeling off the metal to obtain cross line upper electrode; and 10. dry-etching the protection layer and completing preparing of the device.

Provided is a method for fabricating a nanoscale pore which has been researched in a molecular electronics field of chemistry and in a molecular dynamics field of biology, wherein a oxidation pattern is selectively formed on a thin mask layer by anodic nano-oxidation using an AFM, and the oxidation pattern is selectively etched, thereby fabricating the nanoscale pore. Thus, the present invention provides a simple and easy method for fabricating nano pore array.

Work from several laboratories has shown that metal nanofilaments cause problems in some molecular electronics testbeds. A new testbed for exploring the electrical properties of single molecules has been developed to eliminate the possibility of metal nanofilament formation and to ensure that molecular effects are measured. This metal-free system uses single-crystal silicon and single-walled carbon nanotubes as electrodes for the molecular monolayer. A direct Si-arylcarbon grafting method is used. Use of this structure with π-conjugated organic molecules results in a hysteresis loop with current-voltage measurements that are useful for an electronic memory device. The memory is non-volatile for more than 3 days, non-destructive for more than 1,000 reading operations and capable of more than 1,000 write-erase cycles before device breakdown. Devices without π-conjugated molecules (Si—H surface only) or with long-chain alkyl-bearing molecules produced no hysteresis, indicating that the observed memory effect is molecularly relevant.