Multiferroic materials based on organic transition-metal molecular nanowires

Menghao Wu, J. D. Burton, Evgeny Y. Tsymbal, Xiao Cheng Zeng, Puru Jena

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

56 Scopus citations

Abstract

We report on the density functional theory aided design of a variety of organic ferroelectric and multiferroic materials by functionalizing crystallized transition-metal molecular sandwich nanowires with chemical groups such as -F, -Cl, -CN, -NO 2, =O, and -OH. Such functionalized polar wires exhibit molecular reorientation in response to an electric field. Ferroelectric polarizations as large as 23.0 μC/cm 2 are predicted in crystals based on fully hydroxylized sandwich nanowires. Furthermore, we find that organic nanowires formed by sandwiching transition-metal atoms in croconic and rhodizonic acids, dihydroxybenzoquinone, dichloro-dihydroxy-p-benzoquinone, or benzene decorated by -COOH groups exhibit ordered magnetic moments, leading to a multiferroic organometallic crystal. When crystallized through hydrogen bonds, the microscopic molecular reorientation translates into a switchable polarization through proton transfer. A giant interface magnetoelectric response that is orders of magnitude greater than previously reported for conventional oxide heterostructure interfaces is predicted.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)14423-14429
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of the American Chemical Society
Volume134
Issue number35
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 5 2012

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Catalysis
  • General Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • Colloid and Surface Chemistry

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