Resonant Tunneling Spectroscopy to Probe the Giant Stark Effect in Atomically Thin Materials

Area of Science:

• Condensed matter physics
• Materials science
• Device physics

Background:

• Van der Waals heterostructures offer tunable electronic band structures for advanced devices.
• Giant Stark effect-induced band splits in these materials are crucial but underexplored.
• Existing spectroscopy methods face limitations in probing these effects at the device scale.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate a novel spectroscopy technique for analyzing electronic band structures in 2D semiconductors.
• To investigate and visualize the giant Stark effect band splits in atomically thin materials.
• To overcome limitations of conventional spectroscopy for device-scale characterization.

Main Methods:

• Utilized resonant tunneling spectroscopy in resonant tunneling transistors with 2D semiconductors.
• Leveraged the negligible quantum capacitance of 2D semiconductors for precise measurements.
• Applied the technique to probe bandgaps, sub-band structures, and giant Stark effect band splits.

Main Results:

• Successfully demonstrated a new conceptual spectroscopy for device-scale band structure analysis.
• Probed giant Stark effect band splits in channel materials, overcoming conventional spectroscopy limitations.
• Obtained essential information on band structures without relying on debatable quasiparticle effects.

Conclusions:

• Resonant tunneling spectroscopy is a powerful tool for characterizing 2D semiconductor devices.
• The technique enables the design of novel devices by exploiting the giant Stark effect.
• This method provides practical insights for harnessing the full potential of atomically thin materials.