SearcharxivSearch

arXiv subjects

Kyounghwan Kim

Publications and source records attributed to Kyounghwan Kim.

16 recordsLinked to original sources

Highly Valley-Polarized Singlet and Triplet Interlayer Excitons in van der Waals Heterostructure

Two-dimensional semiconductors feature valleytronics phenomena due to locking of the spin and momentum valley of the electrons. However, the valley polarization is intrinsically limited in monolayer crystals by the fast intervalley electron-hole exchange. Hetero-bilayer crystals have been shown to have a longer exciton lifetime and valley depolarization time. But the reported valley polarization was low; the valley selection rules and mechanisms of valley depolarization remains controversial. Here, we report singlet and brightened triplet interlayer excitons both with over 80% valley polarizations, cross- and co-polarized with the pump laser, respectively. This is achieved in WSe2/MoSe2 hetero-bilayers with precise momentum valley alignment and narrow emission linewidth. The high valley polarizations allow us to identify the band minima in a hetero-structure and con_rm unambiguously the direct band-gap exciton transition, ultrafast charge separation, strongly suppressed valley depolarization. Our results pave the way for using semiconductor heterobilayers to control valley selection rules for valleytronic applications.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Spin-Conserving Resonant Tunneling in Twist-Controlled WSe2-hBN-WSe2 Heterostructures

We investigate interlayer tunneling in heterostructures consisting of two tungsten diselenide (WSe2) monolayers with controlled rotational alignment, and separated by hexagonal boron nitride. In samples where the two WSe2 monolayers are rotationally aligned we observe resonant tunneling, manifested by a large conductance and negative differential resistance in the vicinity of zero interlayer bias, which stem from energy- and momentum-conserving tunneling. Because the spin-orbit coupling leads to coupled spin-valley degrees of freedom, the twist between the two WSe2 monolayers allows us to probe the conservation of spin-valley degree of freedom in tunneling. In heterostructures where the two WSe2 monolayers have a 180° relative twist, such that the Brillouin zone of one layer is aligned with the time-reversed Brillouin zone of the opposite layer, the resonant tunneling between the layers is suppressed. These findings provide evidence that in addition to momentum, the spin-valley degree of freedom is also conserved in vertical transport.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Topologically Protected Helical States in Minimally Twisted Bilayer Graphene

In minimally twisted bilayer graphene, a moir{é} pattern consisting of AB and BA stacking regions separated by domain walls forms. These domain walls are predicted to support counterpropogating topologically protected helical (TPH) edge states when the AB and BA regions are gapped. We fabricate designer moir{é} crystals with wavelengths longer than 50 nm and demonstrate the emergence of TPH states on the domain wall network by scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements. We observe a double-line profile of the TPH states on the domain walls, only occurring when the AB and BA regions are gapped. Our results demonstrate a practical and flexible method for TPH state network construction.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Moiré Excitons in Van der Waals Heterostructures

In van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures formed by stacking two monolayer semiconductors, lattice mismatch or rotational misalignment introduces an in-plane moiré superlattice. While it is widely recognized that a moiré superlattice can modulate the electronic band structure and lead to novel transport properties including unconventional superconductivity and insulating behavior driven by correlations, its influence on optical properties has not been investigated experimentally. We present spectroscopic evidence that interlayer excitons are confined by the moiré potential in a high-quality MoSe2/WSe2 heterobilayer with small rotational twist. A series of interlayer exciton resonances with either positive or negative circularly polarized emission is observed in photoluminescence, consistent with multiple exciton states confined within the moiré potential. The recombination dynamics and temperature dependence of these interlayer exciton resonances are consistent with this interpretation. These results demonstrate the feasibility of engineering artificial excitonic crystals using vdW heterostructures for nanophotonics and quantum information applications.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Strongly enhanced tunneling at total charge neutrality in double bilayer graphene-WSe$_2$ heterostructures

We report the experimental observation of strongly enhanced tunneling between graphene bilayers through a WSe$_2$ barrier when the graphene bilayers are populated with carriers of opposite polarity and equal density. The enhanced tunneling increases sharply in strength with decreasing temperature, and the tunneling current exhibits a vertical onset as a function of interlayer voltage at a temperature of 1.5 K. The strongly enhanced tunneling at overall neutrality departs markedly from single-particle model calculations that otherwise match the measured tunneling current-voltage characteristics well, and suggests the emergence of a many-body state with condensed interbilayer excitons when electrons and holes of equal densities populate the two layers.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Tunable $Γ- K$ Valley Populations in Hole-Doped Trilayer WSe$_2$

We present a combined experimental and theoretical study of valley populations in the valence bands of trilayer WSe$_2$. Shubnikov$-$de Haas oscillations show that trilayer holes populate two distinct subbands associated with the $K$ and $Γ$ valleys, with effective masses 0.5$m_e$ and $1.2m_e$, respectively; $m_e$ is the bare electron mass. At a fixed total hole density, an applied transverse electric field transfers holes from $Γ$ orbitals to $K$ orbitals. We are able to explain this behavior in terms of the larger layer polarizability of the $K$ orbital subband.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Coherent Interlayer Tunneling and Negative Differential Resistance with High Current Density in Double Bilayer Graphene-WSe2 Heterostructures

We demonstrate gate-tunable resonant tunneling and negative differential resistance between two rotationally aligned bilayer graphene sheets separated by bilayer WSe2. We observe large interlayer current densities of 2 uA/um2 and 2.5 uA/um2, and peak-to-valley ratios approaching 4 and 6 at room temperature and 1.5 K, respectively, values that are comparable to epitaxially grown resonant tunneling heterostructures. An excellent agreement between theoretical calculations using a Lorentzian spectral function for the two-dimensional (2D) quasiparticle states, and the experimental data indicates that the interlayer current stems primarily from energy and in-plane momentum conserving 2D-2D tunneling, with minimal contributions from inelastic or non-momentum-conserving tunneling. We demonstrate narrow tunneling resonances with intrinsic half-widths of 4 and 6 meV at 1.5 K and 300 K, respectively.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Intra-Domain Periodic Defects in Monolayer MoS$_2$

We present an ultra-high vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) study of structural defects in molybdenum disulfide thin films grown on silicon substrates by chemical vapor deposition. A distinctive type of grain boundary periodically arranged inside an isolated triangular domain, along with other inter-domain grain boundaries of various types, is observed. These periodic defects, about 50 nm apart and a few nanometers in width, remain hidden in optical or low-resolution microscopy studies. We report a complex growth mechanism that produces 2D nucleation and spiral growth features that can explain the topography in our films.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Tunable Moiré Bands and Strong Correlations in Small-Twist-Angle Bilayer Graphene

According to electronic structure theory, bilayer graphene is expected to have anomalous electronic properties when it has long-period moiré patterns produced by small misalignments between its individual layer honeycomb lattices. We have realized bilayer graphene moiré crystals with accurately controlled twist angles smaller than 1 degree and studied their properties using scanning probe microscopy and electron transport. We observe conductivity minima at charge neutrality, satellite gaps that appear at anomalous carrier densities for twist angles smaller than 1 degree, and tunneling densities-of-states that are strongly dependent on carrier density. These features are robust up to large transverse electric fields. In perpendicular magnetic fields, we observe the emergence of a Hofstadter butterfly in the energy spectrum, with four-fold degenerate Landau levels, and broken symmetry quantum Hall states at filling factors 1, 2, 3. These observations demonstrate that at small twist angles, the electronic properties of bilayer graphene moiré crystals are strongly altered by electron-electron interactions.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Density-Dependent Quantum Hall States and Zeeman Splitting in Monolayer and Bilayer WSe$_2$

We report a study of the quantum Hall states (QHSs) sequence of holes in mono- and bilayer WSe$_2$. The QHSs sequence transitions between predominantly even and predominantly odd filling factors as the hole density is tuned in the range $1.6 - 12\times10^{12}$ cm$^{-2}$. The QHSs sequence is insensitive to the transverse electric field, and tilted magnetic field measurements reveal an insensitivity of the QHSs sequence to the in-plane magnetic field, evincing that the hole spin is locked perpendicular to the WSe$_2$ plane. These observations imply that the QHSs sequence is controlled by the Zeeman-to-cyclotron energy ratio, which remains constant as a function of perpendicular magnetic field at a fixed carrier density, but changes as a function of density due to strong electron-electron interaction.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Structural and Electrical Properties of MoTe$_2$ and MoSe$_2$ Grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy

We demonstrate the growth of thin films of molybdenum ditelluride and molybdenum diselenide on sapphire substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. In-situ structural and chemical analyses reveal stoichiometric layered film growth with atomically smooth surface morphologies. Film growth along the (001) direction is confirmed by X-ray diffraction, and the crystalline nature of growth in the 2H phase is evident from Raman spectroscopy. Transmission electron microscopy is used to confirm the layered film structure and hexagonal arrangement of surface atoms. Temperature dependent electrical measurements show an insulating behavior which agrees well with a two-dimensional variable-range hopping model, suggesting that transport in these films is dominated by localized charge-carrier states.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations of high mobility holes in monolayer and bilayer WSe$_2$: Landau level degeneracy, effective mass, and negative compressibility

We study the magnetotransport properties of high mobility holes in monolayer and bilayer WSe$_2$, which display well defined Shubnikov-de Haas (SdH) oscillations, and quantum Hall states (QHSs) in high magnetic fields. In both mono and bilayer WSe$_2$, the SdH oscillations and the QHSs occur predominantly at even filling factors, evincing a two-fold Landau level degeneracy. The Fourier transform analysis of the SdH oscillations in bilayer WSe$_2$ reveal the presence of two subbands localized in the top or the bottom layer, as well as negative compressibility. From the temperature dependence of the SdH oscillations we determine a hole effective mass of $0.45m_{0}$ for both mono and bilayer WSe$_2$.

cond-mat.mes-hall

High-Mobility Holes in Dual-Gated WSe$_2$ Field-Effect Transistors

We demonstrate dual-gated $p$-type field-effect transistors (FETs) based on few-layer tungsten diselenide (WSe$_2$) using high work-function platinum source/drain contacts, and a hexagonal boron nitride top-gate dielectric. A device topology with contacts underneath the WSe$_2$ results in $p$-FETs with $I_{ON}$/$I_{OFF}$ ratios exceeding 10$^7$, and contacts that remain Ohmic down to cryogenic temperatures. The output characteristics show current saturation and gate tunable negative differential resistance. The devices show intrinsic hole mobilities around 140 cm$^2$/Vs at room temperature, and approaching 4,000 cm$^2$/Vs at 2 K. Temperature-dependent transport measurements show a metal-insulator transition, with an insulating phase at low densities, and a metallic phase at high densities. The mobility shows a strong temperature dependence consistent with phonon scattering, and saturates at low temperatures, possibly limited by Coulomb scattering, or defects.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Gate-Tunable Resonant Tunneling in Double Bilayer Graphene Heterostructures

We demonstrate gate-tunable resonant tunneling and negative differential resistance in the interlayer current-voltage characteristics of rotationally aligned double bilayer graphene heterostructures separated by hexagonal boron-nitride (hBN) dielectric. An analysis of the heterostructure band alignment using individual layer densities, along with experimentally determined layer chemical potentials indicates that the resonance occurs when the energy bands of the two bilayer graphene are aligned. We discuss the tunneling resistance dependence on the interlayer hBN thickness, as well as the resonance width dependence on mobility and rotational alignment.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Intrinsic disorder in graphene on transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructures

The electronic properties of two-dimensional materials such as graphene are extremely sensitive to their environment, especially the underlying substrate. Planar van der Waals bonded substrates such as hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) have been shown to greatly improve the electrical performance of graphene devices by reducing topographic variations and charge fluctuations compared to amorphous insulating substrates}. Semiconducting transition metal dichalchogenides (TMDs) are another family of van der Waals bonded materials that have recently received interest as alternative substrates to hBN for graphene as well as for components in novel graphene-based device heterostructures. Additionally, their semiconducting nature permits dynamic gate voltage control over the interaction strength with graphene. Through local scanning probe measurements we find that crystalline defects intrinsic to TMDs induce scattering in graphene which results in significant degradation of the heterostructure quality, particularly compared to similar graphene on hBN devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Chemical Potential and Quantum Hall Ferromagnetism in Bilayer Graphene

Bilayer graphene has a unique electronic structure influenced by a complex interplay between various degrees of freedom. We probe its chemical potential using double bilayer graphene heterostructures, separated by a hexagonal boron nitride dielectric. The chemical potential has a non-linear carrier density dependence, and bears signatures of electron-electron interactions. The data allow a direct measurement of the electric field-induced bandgap at zero magnetic field, the orbital Landau level (LLs) energies, and the broken symmetry quantum Hall state gaps at high magnetic fields. We observe spin-to-valley polarized transitions for all half-filled LLs, as well as emerging phases at filling factors ν= 0 and ν= +-2. Furthermore, the data reveal interaction-driven negative compressibility and electron-hole asymmetry in N = 0, 1 LLs.

cond-mat.mes-hall