arXiv subjects

Mohammad Hafezi

Publications and source records attributed to Mohammad Hafezi.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2025

Giant enhancement of exciton diffusion near an electronic Mott insulator

Bose-Fermi mixtures naturally appear in various physical systems. In semiconductor heterostructures, such mixtures can be realized, with bosons as excitons and fermions as dopant charges. However, the complexity of these hybrid systems challenges the comprehension of the mechanisms that determine physical properties such as mobility. In this study, we investigate interlayer exciton diffusion in an H-stacked WSe$_2$/WS$_2$ heterobilayer. Our measurements are performed in the ultra-low exciton density regime at low temperatures to examine how the presence of charges affects exciton mobility. Remarkably, for charge doping near the Mott insulator phase, we observe a giant enhancement of exciton diffusion of three orders of magnitude compared to charge neutrality. We attribute this observation to mobile valence holes, which experience a suppressed moiré potential due to the electronic charge order in the conduction band, and recombine with any conduction electron in a non-monogamous manner. This new mechanism emerges for sufficiently large fillings in the vicinity of correlated generalized Wigner crystal and Mott insulating states. Our results demonstrate the potential to characterize correlated electron states through exciton diffusion and provide insights into the rich interplay of bosons and fermions in semiconductor heterostructures.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Multi-timescale frequency-phase matching for high-yield nonlinear photonics

Integrated nonlinear photonic technologies, even with state-of-the-art fabrication with only a few nanometer geometry variations, face significant challenges in achieving wafer-scale yield of functional devices. A core limitation lies in the fundamental constraints of energy and momentum conservation laws. Imposed by these laws, nonlinear processes are subject to stringent frequency and phase matching (FPM) conditions that cannot be satisfied across a full wafer without requiring a combination of precise device design and active tuning. Motivated by recent theoretical and experimental advances in integrated multi-timescale nonlinear systems, we revisit this long-standing limitation and introduce a fundamentally relaxed and passive framework: nested frequency-phase matching. As a prototypical implementation, we investigate on-chip multi-harmonic generation in a two-timescale lattice of commercially available silicon nitride (SiN) coupled ring resonators, which we directly compare with conventional single-timescale counterparts. We observe distinct and striking spatial and spectral signatures of nesting-enabled relaxation of FPM. Specifically, for the first time, we observe simultaneous fundamental, second, third, and fourth harmonic generation, remarkable 100 percent multi-functional device yield across the wafer, and ultra-broad harmonic bandwidths. Crucially, these advances are achieved without constrained geometries or active tuning, establishing a scalable foundation for nonlinear optics with broad implications for integrated frequency conversion and synchronization, self-referencing, metrology, squeezed light, and nonlinear optical computing.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2025

Random Pulse Sequences for Qubit Noise Spectroscopy

Qubit noise spectroscopy is an important tool for the experimental investigation of open quantum systems. However, conventional techniques for noise spectroscopy are time-consuming, because they require measurements of the noise spectral density at many different frequencies. Here we describe an alternative approach to noise spectroscopy, which requires fewer resources, and relies on direct measurement of arbitrary linear functionals of the noise spectral density. This method uses random pulse sequences with carefully-controlled correlations, which are chosen using algorithms for phase retrieval. These measurements allow us to reconstruct sparse noise spectra via compressed sensing. Our simulations of the performance of the random pulse sequences on a realistic physical system, self-assembled quantum dots, reveal a speedup of an order of magnitude in extracting the noise spectrum, compared to conventional dynamical decoupling approaches.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Optical engineering and detection of magnetism in moiré semiconductors

We present a general framework for optically inducing, controlling, and probing spin states in moiré systems. In particular, we demonstrate that applying Raman optical drives to moiré transition metal dichalcogenide bilayers can realize a class of spin models, with magnetic interactions tunable via the optical parameters. The resulting interaction anisotropy, controlled by the polarizations of the drives, enables access to magnetic states that are inaccessible in undriven moiré bilayers. Furthermore, we establish direct connections between the resulting spin correlations and experimentally observable optical signals. Our work paves the way for future studies on the optical control and detection on strongly correlated quantum systems.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Collective optical properties of moiré excitons

We propose that excitons in moiré transition metal dichalcogenide bilayers offer a promising platform for investigating collective radiative properties. While some of these optical properties resemble those of cold atom arrays, moiré excitons extend to the deep subwavelength limit, beyond the reach of current optical lattice experiments. Remarkably, we show that the collective optical properties can be exploited to probe certain correlated electron states without requiring subwavelength spatial resolution. Specifically, we illustrate that the Wigner crystal states of electrons doped into these bilayers act as an emergent periodic potential for excitons. Moreover, the collective dissipative excitonic bands and their associated Berry curvature can reveal various charge orders that emerge at the corresponding electronic doping. Our study provides a promising pathway for future research on the interplay between collective effects and strong correlations involving moiré excitons.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Sub-wavelength optical lattice in 2D materials

Recently, light-matter interaction has been vastly expanded as a control tool for inducing and enhancing many emergent non-equilibrium phenomena. However, conventional schemes for exploring such light-induced phenomena rely on uniform and diffraction-limited free-space optics, which limits the spatial resolution and the efficiency of light-matter interaction. Here, we overcome these challenges using metasurface plasmon polaritons (MPPs) to form a sub-wavelength optical lattice. Specifically, we report a ``non-local" pump-probe scheme where MPPs are excited to induce a spatially modulated AC Stark shift for excitons in a monolayer of MoSe$_2$, several microns away from the illumination spot. Remarkably, we identify nearly two orders of magnitude reduction for the required modulation power compared to the free-space optical illumination counterpart. Moreover, we demonstrate a broadening of the excitons' linewidth as a robust signature of MPP-induced periodic sub-diffraction modulation. Our results will allow exploring power-efficient light-induced lattice phenomena below the diffraction limit in active chip-compatible MPP architectures.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Chiral Flat-Band Optical Cavity with Atomically Thin Mirrors

A fundamental requirement for photonic technologies is the ability to control the confinement and propagation of light. Widely utilized platforms include two-dimensional (2D) optical microcavities in which electromagnetic waves are confined between either metallic or distributed Bragg reflectors. Recently, transition metal dichalcogenides hosting tightly bound excitons with high optical quality have emerged as promising atomically thin mirrors. In this work, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a sub-wavelength 2D nano-cavity using two atomically thin mirrors with degenerate resonances. Angle-resolved measurements show a flat band, which sets this system apart from conventional photonic cavities. Remarkably, we demonstrate how the excitonic nature of the mirrors enables the formation of chiral and tunable optical modes upon the application of an external magnetic field. Moreover, we show the electrical tunability of the confined mode. Our work demonstrates a mechanism for confining light with high-quality excitonic materials, opening perspectives for spin-photon interfaces, and chiral cavity electrodynamics.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Long-lived Topological Flatband Excitons in Semiconductor Moiré Heterostructures: a Bosonic Kane-Mele Model Platform

Moiré superlattices based on two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have emerged as a highly versatile and fruitful platform for exploring correlated topological electronic phases. One of the most remarkable examples is the recently discovered fractional quantum anomalous Hall effect (FQAHE) under zero magnetic field. Here we propose a minimal structure that hosts long-lived excitons -- a ubiquitous bosonic excitation in TMD semiconductors -- with narrow topological bosonic bands. The nontrivial exciton topology originates from hybridization of moiré interlayer excitons, and is tunable by controlling twist angle and electric field. At small twist angle, the lowest exciton bands are isolated from higher energy bands and provide a solid-state realization of the bosonic Kane-Mele model with topological flatbands, which could potentially support the bosonic version of FQAHE.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Surface-mediated ultra-strong cavity coupling of two-dimensional itinerant electrons

Engineering phases of matter in cavities requires effective light-matter coupling strengths that are on the same order of magnitude as the bare system energetics, coined the ultra-strong coupling regime. For models of itinerant electron systems, which do not have discrete energy levels, a clear definition of this regime is outstanding to date. Here we argue that a change of the electronic mass exceeding $10\%$ of its bare value may serve as such a definition. We propose a quantitative computational scheme for obtaining the electronic mass in relation to its bare vacuum value and show that coupling to surface polariton modes can induce such mass changes. Our results have important implications for cavity design principles that enable the engineering of electronic properties with quantum light.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Enhanced Cooper Pairing via Random Matrix Phonons in Superconducting Grains

There is rich experimental evidence that granular superconductors and superconducting films often exhibit a higher transition temperature, $T_{c}$, than that in bulk samples of the same material. This paper suggests that this enhancement hinges on random matrix phonons mediating Cooper pairing more efficiently than bulk phonons. We develop the Eliashberg theory of superconductivity in chaotic grains, calculate the random phonon spectrum and solve the Eliashberg equations numerically. Self-averaging of the effective electron-phonon coupling constant is noted, which allows us to fit the numerical data with analytical results based on a generalization of the Berry conjecture. The key insight is that the phonon density of states, and hence $T_{c}$, shows an enhancement proportional to the ratio of the perimeter and area of the grain - the Weyl law. We benchmark our results for aluminum films, and find an enhancement of $T_{c}$ of about $10\%$ for a randomly-generated shape. A larger enhancement of $T_{c}$ is readily possible by optimizing grain geometries. We conclude by noticing that mesoscopic shape fluctuations in realistic granular structures should give rise to a further enhancement of global $T_{c}$ due to the formation of a percolating Josephson network.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2024

Analog Quantum Simulator of a Quantum Field Theory with Fermion-Spin Systems in Silicon

Simulating fermions coupled to spin degrees of freedom, relevant for a range of quantum field theories, represents a promising application for quantum simulators. Mapping fermions to qubits is challenging in $2+1$ and higher spacetime dimensions, and mapping bosons demands substantial quantum-computational overhead. These features complicate the realization of mixed fermion-boson quantum systems in digital quantum computers. We propose a native fermion-(large-)spin analog quantum simulator by utilizing dopant arrays in silicon. Specifically, we show how to use a dynamical lattice of coupled nuclear spins and conduction-band electrons to realize a quantum field theory: an extended Jackiw-Rebbi model involving coupled fermions and quantum rotors. We demonstrate the feasibility of observing dynamical mass generation and a confinement-deconfinement quantum phase transition in 1+1 dimensions on this platform, even in the presence of strong long-range Coulomb interactions. Furthermore, we employ finite-temperature Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov simulations to investigate the dynamics of mass generation in two-dimensional square and honeycomb arrays, showing that this phenomenon can be simulated with realistic experimental parameters. Our findings reveal two distinct phases, and demonstrate robustness against the addition of Coulomb interactions. Finally, we discuss experimental signatures of the phases through transport and local charge sensing in dopant arrays. This study lays the foundation for quantum simulations of quantum field theories exhibiting fermions coupled to spin degrees of freedom using donors in silicon.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Observation of topological frequency combs

On-chip generation of optical frequency combs using nonlinear ring resonators has opened the route to numerous novel applications of combs that were otherwise limited to mode-locked laser systems. Nevertheless, even after more than a decade of development, on-chip nonlinear combs still predominantly rely on the use of single-ring resonators. Recent theoretical investigations have shown that generating combs in a topological array of resonators can provide a new avenue to engineer comb spectra. Here, we experimentally demonstrate the generation of such a novel class of frequency combs, topological frequency combs, in a two-dimensional (2D) lattice of hundreds of nonlinear ring resonators. Specifically, the lattice hosts topological edge states that exhibit fabrication-robust linear dispersion and spatial confinement at the boundary of the lattice. Upon optical pumping of the topological edge band, these unique properties of the edge states lead to the generation of a nested frequency comb that is spectrally confined within the edge bands across $\approx$40 longitudinal modes. Moreover, using spatial imaging of our topological lattice, we confirm that light generated in the comb teeth is indeed spatially confined at the lattice edge, characteristic of linear topological systems. Our results bring together the fields of topological photonics and optical frequency combs, providing an opportunity to explore the interplay between topology and nonlinear systems in a platform compatible with commercially available nanofabrication processes.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Near-Visible Topological Edge States in a Silicon Nitride Platform

Demonstrations of topological photonics have so far largely been confined to infrared wavelengths where imaging technology and access to low-dimensional quantum materials are both limited. Here, we designed and fabricated silicon nitride ring-resonator arrays to demonstrate photonic topological edge states at ~780 nm. We observed edge states corresponding to the integer quantum Hall Hamiltonian with topological protection against fabrication disorder. This demonstration extends the concept of topological edge states to the near-visible regime and paves the way for nonlinear and non-Hermitian topological photonics with the rich library of near-visible quantum emitters.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Excitonic Mott insulator in a Bose-Fermi-Hubbard system of moiré $\rm{WS}_2$/$\rm{WSe}_2$ heterobilayer

Understanding the Hubbard model is crucial for investigating various quantum many-body states and its fermionic and bosonic versions have been largely realized separately. Recently, transition metal dichalcogenides heterobilayers have emerged as a promising platform for simulating the rich physics of the Hubbard model. In this work, we explore the interplay between fermionic and bosonic populations, using a $\rm{WS}_2$/$\rm{WSe}_2$ heterobilayer device that hosts this hybrid particle density. We independently tune the fermionic and bosonic populations by electronic doping and optical injection of electron-hole pairs, respectively. This enables us to form strongly interacting excitons that are manifested in a large energy gap in the photoluminescence spectrum. The incompressibility of excitons is further corroborated by measuring exciton diffusion, which remains constant upon increasing pumping intensity, as opposed to the expected behavior of a weakly interacting gas of bosons, suggesting the formation of a bosonic Mott insulator. We explain our observations using a two-band model including phase space filling. Our system provides a controllable approach to the exploration of quantum many-body effects in the generalized Bose-Fermi-Hubbard model.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Dynamic control of 2D non-Hermitian photonic corner states in synthetic dimensions

Non-Hermitian models describe the physics of ubiquitous open systems with gain and loss. One intriguing aspect of non-Hermitian models is their inherent topology that can produce intriguing boundary phenomena like resilient higher-order topological insulators (HOTIs) and non-Hermitian skin effects (NHSE). Recently, time-multiplexed lattices in synthetic dimensions have emerged as a versatile platform for the investigation of these effects free of geometric restrictions. Despite holding broad applications, studies of these effects have been limited to static cases so far, and full dynamical control over the non-Hermitian effects has remained elusive. Here, we demonstrate the emergence of topological non-Hermitian corner states with remarkable temporal controllability and robustness in a two-dimensional photonic synthetic time lattice. Specifically, we showcase various dynamic control mechanisms for light confinement and flow, including spatial mode tapering, sequential non-Hermiticity on-off switching, dynamical corner state relocation, and light steering. Moreover, we establish the corner state's robustness in the presence of intensity modulation randomness and quantitatively determine its breakdown regime. Our findings extend non-Hermitian and topological photonic effects into higher synthetic dimensions, offering remarkable flexibility and real-time control possibilities. This opens avenues for topological classification, quantum walk simulations of many-body dynamics, and robust Floquet engineering, free from the limitations of physical geometries.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2023

A One-Dimensional Electron Gas Coupled to Light

The prospect of using light to probe or manipulate quantum materials has become an active area of interest. Here, we investigate a quantum wire -- treated as a finite-sized one-dimensional electron gas -- that is coupled to a single photonic mode. This work focuses on the radiative properties of the wire when it is prepared in some excited state. One of our key results addresses the photon cascade initiated by the creation of a single electron-hole pair. Repeated photon emission leads to the generation of entanglement between the electron and hole and the emission rates exhibit Dicke-like superradiance. In general, the radiation is characterized by a competition between superradiance and Pauli blocking. We find that the one-dimensional electron gas represents an ideal system for investigating quantum coherent phenomena and quantum entanglement. This work has direct relevance to applications in quantum computation and quantum transduction.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2023

Energy diffusion in weakly interacting chains with fermionic dissipation-assisted operator evolution

Interacting lattice Hamiltonians at high temperature generically give rise to energy transport governed by the classical diffusion equation; however, predicting the rate of diffusion requires numerical simulation of the microscopic quantum dynamics. For the purpose of predicting such transport properties, computational time evolution methods must be paired with schemes to control the growth of entanglement to tractably simulate for sufficiently long times. One such truncation scheme -- dissipation-assisted operator evolution (DAOE) -- controls entanglement by damping out components of operators with large Pauli weight. In this paper, we generalize DAOE to treat fermionic systems. Our method instead damps out components of operators with large fermionic weight. We investigate the performance of DAOE, the new fermionic DAOE (FDAOE), and another simulation method, density matrix truncation (DMT), in simulating energy transport in an interacting one-dimensional Majorana chain. The chain is found to have a diffusion coefficient scaling like interaction strength to the fourth power, contrary to naive expectations based on Fermi's Golden rule -- but consistent with recent predictions based on the theory of \emph{weak integrability breaking}. In the weak interaction regime where the fermionic nature of the system is most relevant, FDAOE is found to simulate the system more efficiently than DAOE.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2023

Non-bosonic moiré excitons

Optical excitations in moiré transition metal dichalcogenide bilayers lead to the creation of excitons, as electron-hole bound states, that are generically considered within a Bose-Hubbard framework. Here, we demonstrate that these composite particles obey an angular momentum commutation relation that is generally non-bosonic. This emergent spin description of excitons indicates a limitation to their occupancy on each site, which is substantial in the weak electron-hole binding regime. The effective exciton theory is accordingly a spin Hamiltonian, which further becomes a Hubbard model of emergent bosons subject to an occupancy constraint after a Holstein-Primakoff transformation. We apply our theory to three commonly studied bilayers (MoSe2/WSe2, WSe2/WS2, and WSe2/MoS2) and show that in the relevant parameter regimes their allowed occupancies never exceed three excitons. Our systematic theory provides guidelines for future research on the many-body physics of moiré excitons.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗