Substrate-Independent Magnetic Bistability in Monolayers of the Single-Molecule Magnet Dy2ScN@C80 on Metals and Insulators

Abstract

© 2020 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.Magnetic hysteresis is demonstrated for monolayers of the single-molecule magnet (SMM) Dy2ScN@C80 deposited on Au(111), Ag(100), and MgOj Ag(100) surfaces by vacuum sublimation. The topography and electronic structure of Dy2ScN@C80 adsorbed on Au(111) were studied by STM. Xray magnetic CD studies show that the Dy2ScN@C80 monolayers exhibit similarly broad magnetic hysteresis independent on the substrate used, but the orientation of the Dy2ScN cluster depends strongly on the surface. DFT calculations show that the extent of the electronic interaction of the fullerene molecules with the surface is increasing dramatically from MgO to Au(111) and Ag(100). However, the charge redistribution at the fullerene-surface interface is fully absorbed by the carbon cage, leaving the state of the endohedral cluster intact. This Faraday cage effect of the fullerene preserves the magnetic bistability of fullerene-SMMs on conducting substrates and facilitates their application in molecular spintronics.