Asymmetric electric field screening in van der Waals heterostructures

A long-standing challenge facing the combination of two-dimensional crystals into heterojunction is the unknown effect of mixing layer of different electronic properties (semiconductors, metals, insulators) on the screening features of the fabricated device platforms including their functionality. Here we use a compelling set of theoretical and experimental techniques to elucidate the intrinsic dielectric screening properties of heterostructures formed by MoS₂ and graphene layers. We experimentally observed an asymmetric field screening effect relative to the polarization of the applied gate bias into the surface. Surprisingly, such behavior allows selection of the electronic states that screen external fields, and it can be enhanced with increasing of the number of layers of the semiconducting MoS₂ rather than the semi-metal. This work not only provides unique insights on the screening properties of a vast amount of heterojunction fabricated so far, but also uncovers the great potential of controlling a fundamental property for device applications.