Reviewed by Louis CastelJan 29 2025
A French-German team, partly comprised of researchers from the University of Freiburg, demonstrates how effective spin communication via hydrogen bonds is made possible by supramolecular chemistry. The study was published in the journal Nature Chemistry.
The fundamental units of quantum information processing are qubits. Determining the optimal physical realization of qubits for practical applications remains a critical challenge. Molecular spin qubits are considered promising candidates, particularly for molecular spintronics and quantum sensing.
Light can stimulate the materials under study, resulting in the creation of a second spin center and, ultimately, a light-induced quartet state. Up until now, studies have presumed that two spin centers must be covalently connected for their interaction to be powerful enough to form a quartet. The application in quantum technology advancements is severely limited due to the high effort needed to synthesize covalently bonded networks of such systems.
For the first time, scientists from the University of Freiburg's Institute of Physical Chemistry and the University of Strasbourg's Institut Charles Sadron have demonstrated that effective spin communication can be facilitated by non-covalent bonds.
The researchers employed a model system that consists of a nitroxide radical and a perylenediimide chromophore that self-assemble into functional units in solution via hydrogen bonds. The main benefit was that supramolecular techniques could be used to create an ordered network of spin qubits, allowing for the testing of novel molecule combinations and system scalability without requiring significant synthetic work.
The results illustrate the enormous potential of supramolecular chemistry for the development of novel materials in quantum research. It offers innovative ways to research, scale, and optimize these systems. The findings are therefore an important step towards developing new components for molecular spintronics.
Dr. Sabine Richert, Researcher, Institute of Physical Chemistry, University of Freiburg
Richert heads an Emmy Noether junior research group.
Journal Reference:
Khariushin, I. V., Thielert, P., Zöllner, E., Mayländer, M., Quintes, T., Richert, S., & Vargas Jentzsch, A. (2025). Supramolecular dyads as photogenerated qubit candidates. Nature Chemistry. doi.org/10.1038/s41557-024-01716-5.