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Tunable Lattice Reconstruction, Triangular Network of Chiral One-Dimensional States, and Bandwidth of Flat Bands in Magic Angle Twisted Bilayer Graphene

Yi‐Wen Liu, Ying Su, Xiaofeng Zhou, Long‐Jing Yin, Chao Yan, Siyu Li, Wei Yan, Sheng Han, Zhong-Qiu Fu, Yu Zhang, Qian Yang, Ya-Ning Ren, Lin He

2020Physical Review Letters53 citationsDOIOpen Access PDF

Abstract

The interplay between interlayer van der Waals interaction and intralayer lattice distortion can lead to structural reconstruction in slightly twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) with the twist angle being smaller than a characteristic angle θ_{c}. Experimentally, the θ_{c} is demonstrated to be very close to the magic angle (θ≈1.08°). Here we address the transition between reconstructed and unreconstructed structures of the TBG across the magic angle by using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Our experiment demonstrates that both structures are stable in the TBG around the magic angle. By using a STM tip, we show that the two structures can be changed to each other and a triangular network of chiral one-dimensional states hosted by domain boundaries can be switched on and off. Consequently, the bandwidth of the flat band, which plays a vital role in the emergent strongly correlated states in the magic angle TBG, is tuned. This provides an extra control knob to manipulate the exotic electronic states of the TBG near the magic angle.

Topics & Concepts

Magic angleBilayer graphenePhysicsScanning tunneling microscopeCondensed matter physicsLattice (music)Hexagonal latticevan der Waals forceGrapheneQuantum mechanicsSpectral lineMoleculeAntiferromagnetismAcousticsGraphene research and applicationsQuantum and electron transport phenomenaTopological Materials and Phenomena