Electrical control of charged carriers and excitons in atomically thin materials

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Materials Science
• Quantum Electronics

Background:

• Electrical control of charge carriers in nanostructures is key for quantum devices.
• Atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) offer unique properties for 2D quantum electronics and optoelectronics.
• Challenges exist in controlling confinement and manipulation of excitations in TMDs due to material disorder.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a novel method for creating high-quality heterostructures of atomically thin materials.
• To achieve efficient electrical control of electronic and excitonic excitations in these heterostructures.
• To explore new possibilities for quantum electronic and optoelectronic devices based on TMDs.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of high-quality heterostructures using atomically thin materials.
• Utilizing gate-defined, quantum-confined regions for electrical control.
• Experimental investigation of quantum transport, Coulomb blockade, and charged excitons.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated quantum transport with spin-valley locked quantized conductance in quantum point contacts.
• Achieved gate-controlled Coulomb blockade associated with electron confinement.
• Showcased electrical control over charged excitons with tunable confinement and tunnel couplings.

Conclusions:

• The developed method enables precise electrical control over quantum confined excitations in 2D TMD heterostructures.
• This work lays the foundation for novel quantum opto-electronic devices.
• Efficient manipulation of charged carriers and excitons is now achievable.