“…Although in a few cases a complete switching of azobenzenebased thiolate SAMs could be achieved, [7] in many other cases the switching was found to be hindered by steric constraints: within an ordered two-dimensional array the packing is simply too dense to allow for the transition from the cis to the trans state. [8] Interestingly, in a few cases an incomplete switching of azobenzene-based SAMs has been reported, which has been attributed to the increased free space around a minority species, [9] thiolate molecules adsorbed at substrate defects, steps, vacancies, or close to contaminations. Within the perfectly packed, two-dimensional packed arrays, however, the same limitations as in the three-dimensional bulk apply.…”