Inviter: 张坚地 研究员（9454）

Contact: 周发然 副研究员（9677）

Abstract:
The well-developed on-surface synthesis provides a powerful means for the accurate bottom-up design of carbon-based nanostructures, which opens the door to structural engineering of the conjugated polymers to achieve exotic quantum phases and topological quasiparticles. Here, I will introduce our recent advances of the joint tip-based STM-AFM-TERS techniques in characterizing the polaron lattices and topological solitons in single structurally-engineered ethynylene-bonded polypentacene (EBPP). The polaron wavefunctions are well correlated to the spatial electron-vibration coupling strength, as resolved from the periodic-frequency-modulated Raman peak widths. The topological structure of the polymers can be deterministically converted to cumulene-bonded polypentacene (CBPP) with both termini anchored to the Au surface atoms when grown on Au(111). More interestingly, by transforming one of the terminals into the CH3 configuration, topological solitons are introduced at the EBPP and CBPP domain walls. The spatially extended characteristics of the solitonic properties are revealed with both the electronic zero-modes and multiple vibration modes. Our findings can well advance the field of carbon-based quantum materials in the way of both the mythology and high-quality data that can benchmark the theoretical modeling of the intricate quasiparticles.

References:
[1] Y.Y. Wu et al., Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 1580 (2025).
[2] Z.Y. Wang et al., Natl. Sci. Rev. https://doi.org/10.1093/nsr/nwag144 (2026).

About the speaker:
王兵，中国科学技术大学教授，博士生导师，2008年获得自然科学基金委国家杰出青年支持，2015年入选科技创新领军人才。2022年入选“新基石研究员”。王兵教授长期致力于发展针对表面物理和表面化学过程中集空间、时间、能量多域探针显微术和谱学方法，对单分子体系的结构、表面电子态及电子输运性质、表面光催化反应微观机理等物理化学中重要前沿基础科学问题开展了系统的研究。已发表SCI收录论文170余篇，其中3篇Science、2篇Nature等。获2007年第十届中国青年科技奖；获2005年国家自然科学二等奖和2004年安徽省自然科学一等奖；获2014年中国科学院杰出科技成就集体奖（主要完成者）。