Dynamic Exciton Funneling by Local Strain Control in a Monolayer Semiconductor

The ability to control excitons in semiconductors underlies numerous proposed applications, from excitonic circuits to energy transport. Two dimensional (2D) semiconductors are particularly promising for room-temperature applications due to their large exciton binding energy and enormous stretchability. Although the strain-induced static exciton flux has been observed in predetermined structures, dynamic control of exciton flux represents an outstanding challenge. Here, we introduce a method to tune the bandgap of suspended 2D semiconductors by applying a local strain gradient with a nanoscale tip. This strain allows us to locally and reversibly shift the exciton energy and to steer the exciton flux over micrometer-scale distances. We anticipate that our result not only marks an important experimental tool but will also open a broad range of new applications from information processing to energy conversion.