A single-molecule van der Waals compass

Boyuan Shen; Xiao Chen; Huiqiu Wang; Hao Xiong; Eric G. T. Bosch; Ivan Lazić; Dali Cai; Weizhong Qian; Shifeng Jin; Xin Liu; Yu Han; Fei Wei

doi:10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y

A single-molecule van der Waals compass

Boyuan Shen, Xiao Chen, Huiqiu Wang, Hao Xiong, Eric G. T. Bosch, Ivan Lazić, Dali Cai, Weizhong Qian, Shifeng Jin, Xin Liu, Yu Han, Fei Wei

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

93 Scopus citations

Abstract

Single-molecule imaging is challenging but highly beneficial for investigating intermolecular interactions at the molecular level1-6. Van der Waals interactions at the sub-nanometre scale strongly influence various molecular behaviours under confinement conditions7-11. Inspired by the traditional compass12, here we use a para-xylene molecule as a rotating pointer to detect the host-guest van der Waals interactions in the straight channel of the MFI-type zeolite framework. We use integrated differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy13-15 to achieve real-space imaging of a single para-xylene molecule in each channel. A good correlation between the orientation of the single-molecule pointer and the atomic structure of the channel is established by combining the results of calculations and imaging studies. The orientations of para-xylene help us to identify changes in the van der Waals interactions, which are related to the channel geometry in both spatial and temporal dimensions. This work not only provides a visible and sensitive means to investigate host-guest van der Waals interactions in porous materials at the molecular level, but also encourages the further study of other single-molecule behaviours using electron microscopy techniques.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	541-544
Number of pages	4
Journal	Nature
Volume	592
Issue number	7855
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y
State	Published - Apr 21 2021

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-04-27
Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): FCC/1/1974-16-01
Acknowledgements: We thank Q. Zhang and W. Gao for discussions. This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2018YFB0604801), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21771029, 202013981 and 22005170) and the National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFB0602204). Y.H. thanks the Center Applied Research Fund (FCC/1/1974-16-01) from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We thank the Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology for assistance with the energy simulation.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General

Access to Document

10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y

https://repository.kaust.edu.sa/bitstream/10754/664880/1/single%20molecule.pdf

Cite this

@article{0ee7cbe8340b45f982161de69cd3a1c1,

title = "A single-molecule van der Waals compass",

abstract = "Single-molecule imaging is challenging but highly beneficial for investigating intermolecular interactions at the molecular level1-6. Van der Waals interactions at the sub-nanometre scale strongly influence various molecular behaviours under confinement conditions7-11. Inspired by the traditional compass12, here we use a para-xylene molecule as a rotating pointer to detect the host-guest van der Waals interactions in the straight channel of the MFI-type zeolite framework. We use integrated differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy13-15 to achieve real-space imaging of a single para-xylene molecule in each channel. A good correlation between the orientation of the single-molecule pointer and the atomic structure of the channel is established by combining the results of calculations and imaging studies. The orientations of para-xylene help us to identify changes in the van der Waals interactions, which are related to the channel geometry in both spatial and temporal dimensions. This work not only provides a visible and sensitive means to investigate host-guest van der Waals interactions in porous materials at the molecular level, but also encourages the further study of other single-molecule behaviours using electron microscopy techniques.",

author = "Boyuan Shen and Xiao Chen and Huiqiu Wang and Hao Xiong and Bosch, {Eric G. T.} and Ivan Lazi{\'c} and Dali Cai and Weizhong Qian and Shifeng Jin and Xin Liu and Yu Han and Fei Wei",

note = "KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-04-27 Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): FCC/1/1974-16-01 Acknowledgements: We thank Q. Zhang and W. Gao for discussions. This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2018YFB0604801), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21771029, 202013981 and 22005170) and the National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFB0602204). Y.H. thanks the Center Applied Research Fund (FCC/1/1974-16-01) from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We thank the Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology for assistance with the energy simulation.",

year = "2021",

month = apr,

day = "21",

doi = "10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "592",

pages = "541--544",

journal = "Nature",

issn = "0028-0836",

publisher = "Nature Research",

number = "7855",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - A single-molecule van der Waals compass

AU - Shen, Boyuan

AU - Chen, Xiao

AU - Wang, Huiqiu

AU - Xiong, Hao

AU - Bosch, Eric G. T.

AU - Lazić, Ivan

AU - Cai, Dali

AU - Qian, Weizhong

AU - Jin, Shifeng

AU - Liu, Xin

AU - Han, Yu

AU - Wei, Fei

N1 - KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-04-27 Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): FCC/1/1974-16-01 Acknowledgements: We thank Q. Zhang and W. Gao for discussions. This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2018YFB0604801), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21771029, 202013981 and 22005170) and the National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFB0602204). Y.H. thanks the Center Applied Research Fund (FCC/1/1974-16-01) from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We thank the Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology for assistance with the energy simulation.

PY - 2021/4/21

Y1 - 2021/4/21

N2 - Single-molecule imaging is challenging but highly beneficial for investigating intermolecular interactions at the molecular level1-6. Van der Waals interactions at the sub-nanometre scale strongly influence various molecular behaviours under confinement conditions7-11. Inspired by the traditional compass12, here we use a para-xylene molecule as a rotating pointer to detect the host-guest van der Waals interactions in the straight channel of the MFI-type zeolite framework. We use integrated differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy13-15 to achieve real-space imaging of a single para-xylene molecule in each channel. A good correlation between the orientation of the single-molecule pointer and the atomic structure of the channel is established by combining the results of calculations and imaging studies. The orientations of para-xylene help us to identify changes in the van der Waals interactions, which are related to the channel geometry in both spatial and temporal dimensions. This work not only provides a visible and sensitive means to investigate host-guest van der Waals interactions in porous materials at the molecular level, but also encourages the further study of other single-molecule behaviours using electron microscopy techniques.

AB - Single-molecule imaging is challenging but highly beneficial for investigating intermolecular interactions at the molecular level1-6. Van der Waals interactions at the sub-nanometre scale strongly influence various molecular behaviours under confinement conditions7-11. Inspired by the traditional compass12, here we use a para-xylene molecule as a rotating pointer to detect the host-guest van der Waals interactions in the straight channel of the MFI-type zeolite framework. We use integrated differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy13-15 to achieve real-space imaging of a single para-xylene molecule in each channel. A good correlation between the orientation of the single-molecule pointer and the atomic structure of the channel is established by combining the results of calculations and imaging studies. The orientations of para-xylene help us to identify changes in the van der Waals interactions, which are related to the channel geometry in both spatial and temporal dimensions. This work not only provides a visible and sensitive means to investigate host-guest van der Waals interactions in porous materials at the molecular level, but also encourages the further study of other single-molecule behaviours using electron microscopy techniques.

UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10754/664880

UR - http://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03429-y

U2 - 10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y

DO - 10.1038/s41586-021-03429-y

M3 - Article

C2 - 33883731

SN - 0028-0836

VL - 592

SP - 541

EP - 544

JO - Nature

JF - Nature

IS - 7855

ER -

A single-molecule van der Waals compass

Abstract

Bibliographical note

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this