Abstract
Nanoscale manipulation of C60 molecules in a close-packed layer has been achieved by use of scanning tunneling microscope (STM). The evaporation of C60 molecules is performed at a single molecule precision by carrier injection through an application of electric field from STM tip into the close-packed layer, and the voids ascribed to the missing molecules can be freely moved by the carrier injection into the molecules adjacent to the voids. Furthermore, the polymer ring has been formed by the carrier injection from the STM tip into the close-packed layer, and the outer and inner diameters are expanded with an increase in the applied bias voltage. The mechanism for formation of polymer ring is fully discussed by a model based on carrier propagation through the bands of C60 molecules. The carrier propagation has been found to be disturbed by grain boundaries in the close-packed layer.
