arXiv subjects

Wenhui Duan

Publications and source records attributed to Wenhui Duan.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2025

Floquet optical selection rules in black phosphorus

Optical selection rules endorsed by symmetry are crucial for understanding the optical properties of quantum materials and the associated ultrafast spectral phenomena. Here, we introduce momentum-resolved Floquet optical selection rules using group theory to elucidate the pump-probe photoemission spectral distributions of monolayer black phosphorus (BP), which are governed by the symmetries of both the material and the lasers. Using time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT), we further investigate the dynamical evolution of Floquet(-Volkov) states in the photoemission spectra of monolayer BP, revealing their spectral weights at specific momenta for each sideband. These observations are comprehensively explained by the proposed Floquet optical selection rules. Our framework not only clarifies experimental photoemission spectra but also uncovers unexplored characteristics under different pump-probe configurations. Our results are expected to deepen the understanding of light-induced ultrafast spectra in BP and can be extended to other Floquet systems.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

SA-GAT-SR: Self-Adaptable Graph Attention Networks with Symbolic Regression for high-fidelity material property prediction

Recent advances in machine learning have demonstrated an enormous utility of deep learning approaches, particularly Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) for materials science. These methods have emerged as powerful tools for high-throughput prediction of material properties, offering a compelling enhancement and alternative to traditional first-principles calculations. While the community has predominantly focused on developing increasingly complex and universal models to enhance predictive accuracy, such approaches often lack physical interpretability and insights into materials behavior. Here, we introduce a novel computational paradigm, Self-Adaptable Graph Attention Networks integrated with Symbolic Regression (SA-GAT-SR), that synergistically combines the predictive capability of GNNs with the interpretative power of symbolic regression. Our framework employs a self-adaptable encoding algorithm that automatically identifies and adjust attention weights so as to screen critical features from an expansive 180-dimensional feature space while maintaining O(n) computational scaling. The integrated SR module subsequently distills these features into compact analytical expressions that explicitly reveal quantum-mechanically meaningful relationships, achieving 23 times acceleration compared to conventional SR implementations that heavily rely on first principle calculations-derived features as input. This work suggests a new framework in computational materials science, bridging the gap between predictive accuracy and physical interpretability, offering valuable physical insights into material behavior.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2025

Two-Terminal Electrical Detection of the Néel Vector via Longitudinal Antiferromagnetic Nonreciprocal Transport

We propose a robust two-terminal electrical readout scheme for detecting the Néel vector orientation in antiferromagnetic (AFM) materials by leveraging longitudinal nonreciprocal transport driven by quantum metric dipoles. Unlike conventional readout mechanisms, our approach does not require spin-polarized electrodes, tunneling junctions, or multi-terminal geometries, offering a universal and scalable solution for AFM spintronics. As examples, we demonstrate pronounced second-order longitudinal nonlinear conductivity (LNC) in two-dimensional (2D) MnS and 3D CuMnAs, both of which exhibit clear sign reversal of LNC under 180$^\circ$ Néel vector reorientation. We show that this LNC is predominantly governed by the intrinsic, relaxation-time-independent quantum metric mechanism rather than the extrinsic nonlinear Drude effect. Our findings provide a practical and material-general pathway for electrically reading AFM memory states, with promising implications for next-generation AFM spintronic technologies.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Topological surface states in γ-PtBi$_2$ evidenced by scanning tunneling microscopy

For the application of topological materials, the specific location of their topological surface states with respect to the Fermi level are important. γ-PtBi2 has been demonstrated to be a Weyl semimetal possessing superconducting Fermi arcs by photoemission spectroscopy. However, the evidence of its topological surface states is lacking by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), which should be rather sensitive to detect the surface states. Here, we show multiple STM evidences for the existence of topological surface states in γ-PtBi2. We observe not only the step-edge and screw dislocation induced quasiparticle interference fringes, originating from the electron scatterings between the Fermi arcs of γ-PtBi2, but also the back-scattering prohibition related to the spin-flip process, which is the direct evidence for the topological nature of the surface states. Moreover, we demonstrate that the topological surface states are precisely located over a narrow energy range near the Fermi level, within which sharply enhanced intensity and slow spatial decay of quasiparticle interference are observed.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Giant Rashba splitting in PtTe/PtTe$_2$ heterostructure

Achieving a large spin splitting is highly desirable for spintronic devices, which often requires breaking of the inversion symmetry. However, many atomically thin films are centrosymmetric, making them unsuitable for spintronic applications. Here, we report a strategy to achieve inversion symmetry breaking from a centrosymmetric transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) bilayer PtTe$_2$, leading to a giant Rashba spin splitting. Specifically, the thermal annealing turns one layer of PtTe$_2$ sample into a transition metal monochalcogenide (TMMC) PtTe through Te extraction, thus forming PtTe/PtTe$_2$ heterostructure with inversion symmetry breaking. In the naturally-formed PtTe/PtTe$_2$ heterostructure, we observe a giant Rashba spin splitting with Rashba coefficient of $α_{R}$ = 1.8 eV$\cdot$$Å$, as revealed by spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements. Our work demonstrates a convenient and effective pathway for achieving pronounced Rashba splitting in centrosymmetric TMDC thin films by creating TMMC/TMDC heterostructure, thereby extending their potential applications to spintronics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Moiré enhanced flat band in rhombohedral graphene

The fractional quantum anomalous Hall effect (FQAHE) is a fascinating emergent quantum state characterized by fractionally charged excitations in the absence of magnetic field,which could arise from the intricate interplay between electron correlation, nontrivial topology and spontaneous time-reversal symmetry breaking. Recently, FQAHE has been realized in aligned rhombohedral pentalayer graphene on BN superlattice (aligned R5G/BN), where the topological flat band is modulated by the moiré potential. However, intriguingly, the FQAHE is observed only when electrons are pushed away from the moiré interface. The apparently opposite implications from these experimental observations, along with different theoretical models, have sparked intense debates regarding the role of the moiré potential. Unambiguous experimental observation of the topological flat band as well as moiré bands with energy and momentum resolved information is therefore critical to elucidate the underlying mechanism. Here by performing nanospot angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (NanoARPES) measurements, we directly reveal the topological flat band electronic structures of R5G, from which key hopping parameters essential for determining the fundamental electronic structure of rhombohedral graphene are extracted. Moreover, a comparison of electronic structures between aligned and non-aligned samples reveals that the moiré potential plays a pivotal role in enhancing the topological flat band in the aligned sample. Our study provides experimental guiding lines to narrow down the phase space of rhombohedral graphene, laying an important foundation for understanding exotic quantum phenomena in this emerging platform.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Spin-chirality-driven second-harmonic generation in two-dimensional magnet CrSBr

The interplay between magnetism and light can create abundant optical phenomena. Here, we demonstrate the emergence of an unconventional magnetization-induced second-harmonic generation (MSHG) stemming from vector spin chirality, denoted as chiral second-harmonic generation (SHG). Taking the antiferromagnetic (AFM) CrSBr bilayer as a prototype, we theoretically show that, via spin canting, the chiral SHG can be continuously tuned from zero to a value one order of magnitude larger than its intrinsic MSHG. Chiral SHG is found to be proportional to spin chirality and spin-canting-induced electric polarization, while intrinsic MSHG is proportional to the Néel vector, demonstrating their different physical mechanisms. Additionally, we reveal a unique interference effect between these two types of MSHG under the reversal of spin-canting direction, generating a giant modulation of SHG signals. Our work not only uncovers a unique SHG with exceptional tunability but also promotes the applications of AFM optical devices and magnetoelectric detection techniques.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Imaging moiré flat bands and Wigner molecular crystals in twisted bilayer MoTe2

Two-dimensional semiconducting moiré materials have emerged as a highly tunable platform for exploring novel quantum phenomena. Recently, tMoTe2 has attracted significant attentions due to the observation of the long-sought fractional quantum anomalous Hall effect. However, a comprehensive microscopic understanding of the tMoTe2 moiré superlattice remains elusive. Here, we report STM/STS studies in dual-gated tMoTe2 moiré devices with twist angles ranging from 2.3 to 3.8 deg. The device consists of two independent back-gates, one enables an ohmic contact for tMoTe2, while the other fine-tunes the Fermi level of tMoTe2. This dual-gate control enables direct measurement of the electronic structure in tMoTe2 under varied displacement fields and moiré filling factors, by fine tuning the gate voltage and the tip bias. Our STS spectra and spatial imaging reveal that the low-energy moiré flat bands are predominantly localized in the XM and MX regions of the moiré superlattice. At zero E-field, these bands form a honeycomb lattice with non-trivial topology, whereas an applied E-field drives a transition into two distinct triangular lattices with trivial topology. The spatial distributions align with large-scale first-principle calculations, demonstrating that the topological flat bands arise from the K-valley hybridization between the top and bottom MoTe2 layers. Furthermore, we show that the effective moiré potential depth can be controlled via gate and tip biases. At sufficient potential depths, we observe the emergence of Wigner molecular crystals, transitioning MX triangular lattice into a Kagome lattice at MX moiré filling factor 3. These results elucidate the microscopic origin of topological flat bands in tMoTe2 and demonstrate electric-field control of topology and correlated electronic orders, paving the way to engineer exotic quantum phases in moiré simulators.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Quantum Metric-induced Oscillations in Flat Bands

The transport of Bloch electrons under strong fields is traditionally understood through two mechanisms: intraband Bloch oscillations and interband Zener tunneling. Here, we propose an oscillation mechanism induced by the interband quantum metric, which would significantly affect the electron dynamics under strong fields. By considering the multiband dynamics to the second order of the density matrix, we reveal that quantum metric induced oscillations (QMOs) persist regardless of band dispersion, even in exactly dispersionless flat bands. The resultant drift current can reach a magnitude comparable to the Bloch oscillation induced drift current in systems where interband tunneling is negligible. Notably, the QMO induced drift current increases linearly with electric field strength under the constraints of time-reversal or spatial-inversion symmetry, emerging as the primary delocalized current. We further show that both one-dimensional and two-dimensional superlattices are potential platforms for investigating QMO.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Long-Range Spin-Orbit-Coupled Magnetoelectricity in Type-II Multiferroic NiI$_2$

Type-II multiferroics, where spin order induces ferroelectricity, exhibit strong magnetoelectric coupling. However, for the typical 2D type-II multiferroic NiI$_2$, the underlying magnetoelectric mechanism remains unclear. Here, applying generalized spin-current model, together with first-principles calculations and a tight-binding approach, we build a comprehensive magnetoelectric model for spin-induced polarization. Such model reveals that the spin-orbit coupling extends its influence to the third-nearest neighbors, whose contribution to polarization rivals that of the first-nearest neighbors. By analyzing the orbital-resolved contributions to polarization, our tight-binding model reveals that the long-range magnetoelectric coupling is enabled by the strong $e_g$-$p$ hopping of NiI$_2$. Monte Carlo simulations further predict a Bloch-type magnetic skyrmion lattice at moderate magnetic fields, accompanied by polar vortex arrays. These findings can guide the discovery and design of strongly magnetoelectric multiferroics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Magnetorotons in Moiré Fractional Chern Insulators

The discovery of fractional Chern insulators (FCIs) unlocks exciting opportunities to explore emergent physical excitations arising from topological and geometric effects in novel phases of quantum matter. Here we investigate the intraband neutral excitations, namely magnetorotons, in moiré FCIs within twisted $\rm{MoTe}_2$ by applying the Girvin, MacDonald, and Platzman (GMP) ansatz together with the method of dynamical geometric response. We reveal the universal existence of the finite-momentum magnetorotons in moiré FCIs and predict their characteristic scales. Furthermore, we explore the geometric nature of magnetorotons in the long-wavelength limit, identifying their gapped chiral nature with angular momentum-2, which originates from the momentum-space incompressibility of FCIs. Utilizing the excellent tunability of moiré systems, we extend our analysis to other incompressible phases and uncover the dynamical properties of geometric excitations influenced by quantum phase transitions. Finally, we provide experimental proposals for detecting and advancing the study of intraband neutral excitations in moiré FCIs.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Floquet-Volkov interference in a semiconductor

Intense light-field can dress both Bloch electrons inside crystals and photo-emitted free electrons in the vacuum, dubbed as Floquet and Volkov states respectively. These quantum states can further interfere coherently, modulating light-field dressed states. Here, we report experimental evidence of the Floquet-Volkov interference in a semiconductor - black phosphorus. A highly asymmetric modulation of the spectral weight is observed for the Floquet-Volkov states, and such asymmetry can be further controlled by rotating the pump polarization. Our work reveals the quantum interference between different light-field dressed electronic states, providing insights for material engineering on the ultrafast timescale.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Transfer learning electronic structure: millielectron volt accuracy for sub-million-atom moiré semiconductor

The integration of density functional theory (DFT) with machine learning enables efficient \textit{ab initio} electronic structure calculations for ultra-large systems. In this work, we develop a transfer learning framework tailored for long-wavelength moiré systems. To balance efficiency and accuracy, we adopt a two-step transfer learning strategy: (1) the model is pre-trained on a large dataset of computationally inexpensive non-twisted structures until convergence, and (2) the network is then fine-tuned using a small set of computationally expensive twisted structures. Applying this method to twisted MoTe$_2$, the neural network model generates the resulting Hamiltonian for a 1000-atom system in 200 seconds, achieving a mean absolute error below 0.1 meV. To demonstrate $O(N)$ scalability, we model nanoribbon systems with up to 0.25 million atoms ($\sim9$ million orbitals), accurately capturing edge states consistent with predicted Chern numbers. This approach addresses the challenges of accuracy, efficiency, and scalability, offering a viable alternative to conventional DFT and enabling the exploration of electronic topology in large scale moiré systems towards simulating realistic device architectures.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

Light-induced ultrafast glide-mirror symmetry breaking in black phosphorus

Symmetry breaking plays an important role in fields of physics, ranging from particle physics to condensed matter physics. In solid-state materials, phase transitions are deeply linked to the underlying symmetry breakings, resulting in a rich variety of emergent phases. Such symmetry breakings are often induced by controlling the chemical composition and temperature or applying an electric field and strain, etc. In this work, we demonstrate an ultrafast glide-mirror symmetry breaking in black phosphorus through Floquet engineering. Upon near-resonance pumping, a light-induced full gap opening is observed at the glide-mirror symmetry protected nodal ring, suggesting light-induced breaking of the glide-mirror symmetry. Moreover, the full gap is observed only in the presence of the light-field and disappears almost instantaneously ($\ll$100 fs) when the light-field is turned off, suggesting the ultrafast manipulation of the symmetry and its Floquet engineering origin. This work not only demonstrates light-matter interaction as an effective way to realize ultrafast symmetry breaking in solid-state materials, but also moves forward towards the long-sought Floquet topological phases.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Manipulating the symmetry of photon-dressed electronic states

Strong light-matter interaction provides opportunities for tailoring the physical properties of quantum materials on the ultrafast timescale by forming photon-dressed electronic states, i.e., Floquet-Bloch states. While the light field can in principle imprint its symmetry properties onto the photon-dressed electronic states, so far, how to experimentally detect and further engineer the symmetry of photon-dressed electronic states remains elusive. Here by utilizing time- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (TrARPES) with polarization-dependent study, we directly visualize the parity symmetry of Floquet-Bloch states in black phosphorus. The photon-dressed sideband exhibits opposite photoemission intensity to the valence band at the $Γ$ point,suggesting a switch of the parity induced by the light field. Moreover, a "hot spot" with strong intensity confined near $Γ$ is observed, indicating a momentum-dependent modulation beyond the parity switch. Combining with theoretical calculations, we reveal the light-induced engineering of the wave function of the Floquet-Bloch states as a result of the hybridization between the conduction and valence bands with opposite parities, and show that the "hot spot" is intrinsically dictated by the symmetry properties of black phosphorus. Our work suggests TrARPES as a direct probe for the parity of the photon-dressed electronic states with energy- and momentum-resolved information, providing an example for engineering the wave function and symmetry of such photon-dressed electronic states via Floquet engineering.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Chiral Floquet Engineering on Topological Fermions in Chiral Crystals

The interplay of chiralities in light and quantum matter provides an opportunity to design and manipulate chirality-dependent properties in quantum materials. Herein we report the chirality-dependent Floquet engineering on topological fermions with the high Chern number in chiral crystal CoSi via circularly polarized light (CPL) pumping. Intense light pumping does not compromise the gapless nature of topological fermions in CoSi, but displaces the crossing points in momentum space along the direction of light propagation. The Floquet chirality index is proposed to signify the interplay between the chiralities of topological fermion, crystal, and incident light, which determines the amplitudes and directions of light-induced momentum shifts. Regarding the time-reversal symmetry breaking induced by the CPL pumping, momentum shifts of topological fermions result in the birth of transient anomalous Hall signals in non-magnetic CoSi within an ultrafast time scale, which Mid-infrared (IR) pumping and terahertz (THz) Kerr or Faraday probe spectroscopy could experimentally detect. Our findings provide insights into exploring novel applications in optoelectronic devices by leveraging the degree of freedom of chirality in the non-equilibrium regime.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Correlated topological flat bands in rhombohedral graphite

Flat bands and nontrivial topological physics are two important topics of condensed matter physics. With a unique stacking configuration analogous to the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model, rhombohedral graphite (RG) is a potential candidate for realizing both flat bands and nontrivial topological physics. Here we report experimental evidence of topological flat bands (TFBs) on the surface of bulk RG, which are topologically protected by bulk helical Dirac nodal lines via the bulk-boundary correspondence. Moreover, upon {\it in situ} electron doping, the surface TFBs show a splitting with exotic doping evolution, with an order-of-magnitude increase in the bandwidth of the lower split band, and pinning of the upper band near the Fermi level. These experimental observations together with Hartree-Fock calculations suggest that correlation effects are important in this system. Our results demonstrate RG as a new platform for investigating the rich interplay between nontrivial band topology, correlation effects, and interaction-driven symmetry-broken states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Stable magic angle in twisted Kane-Mele materials

We propose that flat bands and van Hove singularities near the magic angle can be stabilized against angle disorder in the twisted Kane-Mele model. With continuum model and maximally localized Wannier function approaches, we identify a quadratic dispersion relationship between the bandwidth, interaction parameters versus the twist angle, in contrast to twisted bilayer graphene (TBG). Introducing Kane-Mele spin-orbit coupling to TBG greatly reduces the fractional Chern insulator indicator and enhances the stability of fractional Chern states near the magic angle, as confirmed by exact diagonalization calculations. Moreover, in twisted bilayer Pt$_2$HgSe$_3$ with intrinsic Kane-Mele spin-orbit coupling, we identify a topological flat band at a large twist angle around 4 degrees.

cond-mat.str-el↗