Lattice Relaxation in Magic Angle Twisted Trilayer Graphene

ORAL

Abstract

Magic angle twisted trilayer graphene (MATTG) has recently emerged as a new platform to study strong correlations in flat band systems. Composed of graphene layers with an alternating twist angle of roughly 1.56 degrees, initial transport studies in these systems suggested some role for structural relaxation that may act to align the top and bottom layers reducing the twist angle disorder. However, a complete understanding of how the lattices relax in trilayer systems requires direct imaging of the lattice. Using scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) and Piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), we report on evidence of moiré lattice relaxation that leads to the formation of large regions of highly uniform local twist angle at the magic angle, which are bounded by regions of higher local twist angle.

*Programmable Quantum Materials, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the US Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences (BES), under award DE-SC0019443NSF MRSEC program through Columbia in the Center for Precision-Assembled Quantum Materials (PAQM) - DMR-2011738

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Presenters

  • Joshua Swann

    • Columbia University

Authors

  • Joshua Swann

    • Columbia University

  • Simon E Turkel

    • Columbia University

  • Ziyan Zhu

    • Harvard University

  • Maine Christos

    • Harvard University

  • Kenji Watanabe

    • NIMS
    • Research Center for Functional Materials, National Institute for Materials Science
    • National Institute of Materials Science
    • National Institue for Materials Science
    • National Institute for Materials Science, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
    • National Institute of Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science
    • NIMS, Japan

  • Takashi Taniguchi

    • National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science
    • NIMS
    • Kyoto Univ
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan.
    • 3 National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science; 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
    • National Institute of Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • National Institute of Materials Science
    • Advanced Materials Laboratory, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, 305-0044, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science (Japan)
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba 305-0044, Japan
    • Kyoto University
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, Japan
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for MaterialsScience, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba 305-0044, Japan
    • National Institute for Material Science, Japan
    • National Institute for Material Science
    • National Institute of Material Sciences, Japan
    • NIMS, Tsukuba
    • 2National Institute for Materials Science, Namiki 1-1, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan.
    • National Institute of Materials Science, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science, Japan
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA), National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan.
    • NIMS, Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
    • NIMS. Japan
    • International Center for Material Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
    • International Center for Material Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science
    • National Institute for Materials Science Tsukuba
    • National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki
    • National Institute for Materials Science of Japan
    • National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba 305-0044, Japan
    • NIMS - National Institute for Material Science, Japan
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Material Science, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan.
    • National Institute for Material Science, Tsukuba
    • National Institute for Materials Science, International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
    • National Institute of Material Science
    • National Institute for Materials Science,1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, 305-0044, Japan

  • Subir Sachdev

    • Harvard University

  • Mathias S Scheurer

    • University of Innsbruck, Austria
    • University of Innsbruck

  • Efthimios Kaxiras

    • Harvard University

  • Abhay N Pasupathy

    • Columbia University
    • Brookhaven National Laboratory & Columbia University

  • Cory R Dean

    • Columbia University
    • Columbia Univ