Junji Jin(석사과정) Gyu Don Kong(박사과정)
Whereas single-component self-assembled
monolayers (SAMs) have served widely as organic components in molecular and
organic electronics, how the performance of the device is influenced by the
heterogeneity of monolayers has been little understood. This paper describes
charge transport by quantum tunneling across mixed SAMs of n-alkanethiolates of
different lengths formed on ultraflat template-stripped gold substrate.
Electrical characterization using liquid metal comprising eutectic gallium−indium alloy reveals that
the surface topography of monolayer largely depends on the difference in length
between the thiolates and is translated into distribution of tunneling current
density. As the length difference is more significant, more phase
segregation takes place, leading to an increase in the modality of Gaussian fitting curves.
Consequently, statistical analysis permits access to deconvolution of tunneling
currents, mirroring the phase-segregated surface. Our work provides an insight
into the role of surface topography in the performance of molecular-scale
electronic devices. 
