The interplay between magnetism and chemical binding

Single molecule spintronics aim to identify new spin transport effects near the limit of electronic component’s miniaturization. While the focus in this field is on magneto-transport properties, not much is known about the effect of magnetism on the structure of molecular conductors. Here, we reveal a new phenomenon: the direction of applied magnetic field can affect the properties of a metal-molecule chemical bond. Specifically, we show that magnetic field direction affects the formation of metal-single molecule-metal junctions and the stability of the metal-molecule bond. Our findings reveal the interplay between magnetism and chemical binding at the level of a single chemical bond.