• WELCOME

    We are an experimental research group investigating the electronic and magnetic properties of matter on the nanoscale, and developing strategies to manipulate them with atomic precision.

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  • WELCOME

    Our current research activities focus on metal-organic and graphene-based heterostructures, as well as two dimensional electron gases in the presence of superlattice structures.

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  • WELCOME

    We are based at the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), which is located on the campus of the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona.

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Our Research

Our research activity is focused on the electronic and magnetic properties of low dimensional systems and hybrid organic/inorganic heterostructures. Combining scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy (STM/STS) with other non-local spectroscopies (XPS/ARPES,  XAS/XMCD), we study the correlation between structural, electronic and magnetic properties in order to manipulate them with atomic precision.

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Job Offers

Postdoctoral positions

Our group encourages motivated candidates to apply for competitive grants to join us. The 2022 calls for Juan de la Cierva and Ramon y Cajal Fellowships will open by the end of November, with deadline around mid December (exact dates will be ...
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Predoctoral position

Our group also encourages motivated predoctoral candidates to apply for competitive grants to join us. At the present we have a project focused on “Tailoring quantum properties of 2D materials by imprinted superlattices”  in the 2023 call for the La Caixa INPhINIT ...
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Latest News

An IMDEA-ICN2-ALBA collaboration brings the first publication of LOREA beamline at ALBA

A study on the manipulation of topological surface states led by Miguel Angel Valbuena, a former member of the group and at the present at IMDEA nanociencia, becomes the first ...
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Our last publication on nanoporous graphene on the cover of JACS!

Our last results on nanoporous graphene has been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, in the issue released today. The work is highlighted in the front cover ...
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Maria receives the ICN2 Women Talent Award for the best PhD thesis!

Maria Tenorio has been awarded for the best PhD thesis of 2022 in the Women Talen Program of ICN2. Congratulations Maria!
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Welcome to Emigdio!

Emigdio Chavez has joined the group to bring photons to our SPMs! He will take part in the InCAEM project by being in charge of setting up the Environmental Photon ...
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Molecular electronics and magnetism

Ligand and coordination chemistry can be used to design metal-organic molecules with an endless portfolio of physical properties. The pristine molecular properties are however, in most cases strongly modified in the presence of an interface. In our group we investigate how the interfacial interaction affects the molecular properties, and examine different manipulation strategies to control the molecular charge and spin, such as electron doping or the use of magnetic templates.

Graphene nanoarchitectonics

The unique properties of graphene, such as its gapless relativistic band structure and pseudospin magnetic character, have made this carbon-based material the focus of extremely numerous and diverse investigations during the last years. Such an extensive interest originates from the possibility of realizing graphene-based optolectronic and spintronic devices.

Manipulating electrons with step superlattices

Scattering processes affect electron dynamics, transport and quantum confinement. Hence, understanding the mechanisms behind different scattering phenomena is of paramount importance both for fundamental knowledge and the design of novel electronic nanodevices.

Publication Highlights

Experimental Demonstration of a Magnetically Induced Warping Transition in a Topological Insulator Mediated by Rare-Earth Surface Dopants

B. Muñiz Cano, Y. Ferreiros, P. A. Pantaleón, J. Dai, M. Tallarida, A. I. Figueroa, V. Marinova, K. García-Díez, A. Mugarza, S. O. Valenzuela, R. Miranda, J. Camarero, F. Guinea, J. A. Silva-Guillén, and M. A. Valbuena, Nanoletters, ASAP

Molecular Bridge Engineering for Tuning Quantum Electronic Transport and Anisotropy in Nanoporous Graphene

C. Moreno, X. Diaz de Cerio, M. Vilas-Varela, M. Tenorio, A. Sarasola, M. Brandbyge, D. Peña, A. Garcia-Lekue, and A. Mugarza, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 145, 16, 8988–8995 (2023).

Atomically Sharp Lateral Superlattice Heterojunctions Built-in Nitrogen-doped Nanoporous Graphene

M. Tenorio, C. Moreno, P. Febrer, J. Castro-Esteban, P. Ordejón, D. Peña, M. Pruneda, and A. Mugarza, Advanced Materials 34, 2110099 (2022)

Tuning the Magnetic Anisotropy of Lanthanides on a Metal Substrate by Metal–Organic Coordination

S. O. Parreiras, D. Moreno, B. Cirera, M. A. Valbuena, J. I. Urgel, M. Paradinas, M. Panighel, F. Ajejas, M. A. Niño, J. M. Gallego, M. Valvidares, P. Gargiani, W. Kuch, J. I. Martínez, A. Mugarza, J. Camarero, R. Miranda, P. Perna, D. Écija, Small 17, 2102753 (2021).

Stabilizing Edge Fluorination in Graphene Nanoribbons

M. Panighel, S. Quiroga, P. Brandimarte, C. Moreno, A. Garcia-Lekue, M. Vilas-Varela, D. Rey,  G. Sauthier, G. Ceballos, D. Peña, and A Mugarza, ACS Nano 14, 11120-11129 (2020).