Conductance measurements of polar molecules in a non-conducting solvent

Solution-based single-molecule conductance measurements of 𝛼,ω-bis(carboxylic acids) are conveniently performed using high-boiling point, non-conducting ethereal solvents. Tunnel coupling calculations support experimental observations that linear oligoalkanes exhibit the expected exponential decay of conductance with length, whereas junctions comprising cyclic bridge hydrocarbons of different length and/or structure exhibit a similar conductance.