Alessandro Lunghi

A tiny molecule made of just a few atoms can behave like a permanent magnet. It becomes magnetized and is in no hurry to demagnetize, even when the external field is removed. Such molecules are called single-molecule magnets, and they interest scientists as a possible basis for ultra-dense information storage.

At the heart of a future quantum computer might lie a tiny organic molecule shaped like a triangle. It has two 'extra' electrons that don't pair up. Such molecules are called diradicals, and their electrons can store information in a special, quantum way.