Energetics of molecular interfaces

Transport of charge carriers through interfaces is crucial to all electronic and optoelectronic devices, in particular devices based on organic molecular films and, especially, monomolecular layers and single molecules. The energetics of molecular interfaces are exceedingly important, therefore, and must be understood in detail so that we can model and control their behavior. This knowledge, however, is not always sufficient, as the very physics of charge carrier transport through molecular interfaces remains, at times, unclear. This article provides an overview of the main issues being researched actively in the field of interfaces involving organic molecules, and points out areas where progress has been made and where basic questions remain unanswered.