Gold-surface binding of molecular switches studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy

The nonanuclear coordination compound [MoIV{(CN)FeIII(3-methyl-saldptn)}8]Cl4 exhibits multiple spin transitions (3-methyl-saldptn = N,N′-bis(3′′-methyl-2′′-hydroxy-benzyliden)-1,7-diamino-4-azaheptane). This spin crossover cluster is bound via a self-assembled monolayer onto a two dimensional array gold surface. Mössbauer spectroscopy indicates that the thermally and optically induced spin crossover of the compound is maintained. Thereby, the foundation for its potential practical application (e.g. in the field of information storage) was laid.