arXiv subjects

Moru Song

Publications and source records attributed to Moru Song.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Incommensurate-Stabilized Fractional Chern Insulator in Alternating Twisted Trilayer Graphene

Fractional Chern insulators (FCIs) typically emerge in topological flat bands and are regarded as lattice analogs of fractional quantum Hall states. Conventionally, the flat-band wavefunctions that support FCIs are expected to mimic the lowest Landau level, a condition that can be quantified by the quantum-geometric indicators. In realistic systems, however, FCIs often compete with lattice symmetry-breaking orders, especially when the hosting flat bands not ideal. In this work, we propose stabilizing FCIs by exploiting the intrinsic incommensurability of alternating twisted trilayer graphene, which naturally suppresses competing charge-density-wave (CDW) phase while FCIs are less effected. Within an adiabatic approximation at the supermoir\'e scale, the effect of incommensuration on local physics can be quantified as phase shifts of interlayer coupling. Using exact diagonalization, we compute ground states in different local patches and uncover a strikingly counterintuitive result: the FCI gap increases as the quantum-geometric indicators worsen. Within certain parameter ranges, we further identify mixed phases where FCIs coexist with CDWs, but with CDWs confined only to patches of weak incommensurability. Finally, we provide experimental protocols and discuss how incommensuration enrich the system's topology and quantum geometry. Not only do our results establish incommensuration as a robust stabilizer of FCIs, but also provide a general paradigm for exploring strong-correlation physics in incommensurate systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Fractional Chern Insulators Transition in Non-ideal Flat Bands of Twisted Mono-bilayer Graphene

Fractional Chern insulators (FCIs) in ideal flat bands with Chern number $C$ are commonly understood as color-entangled states constructed from $C$ copies of the lowest Landau level. In realistic moir\'e systems, however, the band geometry is generally non-ideal, and the mechanism that stabilizes such FCIs remains unclear. Using twisted monolayer-bilayer graphene as a platform, we find two FCIs separated by a topological transition that occurs in a regime signaled by a local geometric instability of the Bloch states. Below the transition, the target $C=2$ conduction band is geometrically stable, and the resulting fractional phase is naturally described by the Halperin-$(112)$ state. Above the transition, the system becomes geometrically unstable and enters a Laughlin-$1/3$ phase within the same target $C=2$ manifold, which persists even as standard quantum-geometry indicators degrade further. We attribute this Laughlin-$1/3$ phase to a hidden near-ideal $C=1$ component of the non-ideal $C=2$ Bloch states that becomes relevant under interactions, while its strongly non-ideal partner becomes irrelevant. We support this picture by applying a weak perpendicular magnetic field that acts as a ``color separator,'' directly visualizing the ideal subcomponent at the single-particle level. Together, these results clarify how non-ideal flat bands can stabilize FCIs, greatly expanding their parameter range and sharpening the role of quantum geometry in strongly correlated topological phases.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Emergence of Cascading Flat Bands in Breathing Superlattices

Flat bands have become a pillar of modern condensed matter physics and photonics owing to the vanishing group velocity and diverging density of states. Here, we present a paradigmatic scheme to construct arbitrary flat bands on demand by introducing a new type breathing superlattice, where both the number and spectral positions of isolated flat bands can be continuously tailored by simply controlling the breathing strength. Microscopically, the momentum-independent interband scatterings near the band edge protect them robust against weak intra-cell disorder. By dimensional reduction, we establish a duality between the one-dimensional (1D) breathing superlattice and the 2D Harper-Hofstadter model, where cascade flat bands naturally emerge as the different orders of Landau levels in the weak magnetic flux limit. As a proof of concept, photonic flat bands at optical frequencies are experimentally demonstrated with all-dielectric photonic crystal slabs. Finally, we generalize our scheme to 2D systems to realize partial and omnidirectional flat bands, and discuss the achievement of high-quality factors. Our findings shed new light on the manipulation of flat bands with high band flatness and large usable bandwidth, paving the way for the development of advanced optical devices.

physics.optics↗