Undergraduate Research & Scholarships

Daniel Lee L&S Math & Physical Sciences

Detecting Correlated States In Magic-Angle Helical Trilayer Graphene

Graphene-based “twistronics” – samples with multiple layers of graphene stacked possibly with twists – have shown to host a plethora of interesting physics, such as superconductivity and dissipationless transport. At the heart of all this physics lies the moire pattern – large periodic structures when two or more layers of graphene are stacked on top of each other with a twist. The geometry of the moire structure for a particular graphene twistronic determines its electrical properties. Recently, a “magic-angle” of 1.9° has been proposed for helical trilayer graphene (HTG), a device with three layers of graphene stacked with equal consecutive twists (1.9°) in one direction. At this magic angle, the HTG device is predicted to form a “super-moire” that hosts a “network” of dissipationless currents. Such a phenomenon has never been observed in other 2D devices. This project aims to experimentally detect the various topological phases, in particular the fractional chern insulator state, as well as the edge state networks in HTG with scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy (STM/STS).

Message To Sponsor

I'd like to thank my donor for providing me with the opportunity to continue working on the HTG project over the summer. Without your support, this project would have faced delays of months. I'll ensure to get the most out of this opportunity. Thank you.
Major: Physics, Mathematics
Mentor: Michael Crommie
Sponsor: Shin Morgan
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