Molecular interferometry and molecular nanostructures

Quantum physics is one of the corner stones of modern sciences, but its particular features, such as the wave- particles duality, usually are not apparent in our everyday life. Much effort in current quantum physics is therefore dedicated to a better understanding of the processes in quantum experiments with objects of increasing size and complexity. Recent experiments an molecule interferometry have shown that even quantum experiments with small biological molecules are feasible and it is expected that interferometry with particles of several nanometers diameter and several thousand mass units will become feasible in the near future. Massive objects are associated with quantum waves of very short wavelengths. The corresponding interferograms require detectors of utmost resolution. Scanning probe microscopy (SPM), with a spatial resolution of significantly less than the molecular diameter are consequently ideal for such applications. The development of SPM interference detectors is an important part of the present project. The second aspect of the work is related to the insight that molecule interferograms actually represent a novel method of depositiong molecular nanostructures on surfaces. We observe that the size and mass of molecules in quantum experiments is continuously growing, while the structure sizes in nanotechnology are constantly shrinking - as best seen in the increasing level of integration of semiconductor devices. These two branches of science and technology are expected to meet in the near future. The present project builds on existing experimental molecule interferometry and extends it by using SPM methods for the detection of particles deposited on a target screen. This will not only make existing experiments more sensitive and provide better quality and therefore more conclusive data, but it will also enable the investigation of the use of Moiré deflectometers and Talbot Lau interferometers for creating novel molecular nanostructures on surfaces. In the long run these methods may open new possibilities for both nanoscience and technology, eventually leading to new building blocks for classical and/ or quantum information processing.