Effects of gold contacts on transport through benzene molecule

we study electronic transport through a benzene molecule attached to two gold electrodes via sulfur clips. The conductance characteristics of the device is derived for two different atomistic models of the gold contacts: A chain model and part of Au(Ill) surface. The results show that the conductance characteristics strongly depend on the model used for the electrodes, therefore this factor should be taken into consideration while comparing different theoretical/experimental results. The relevance of the accurate determination of the relative position of sulfur clips and surface gold atoms are clarified.