Localization-enhanced moiré exciton in twisted transition metal dichalcogenide heterotrilayer superlattices

Abstract

The stacking of twisted two-dimensional (2D) layered materials has led to the creation of moiré superlattices, which have become a new platform for the study of quantum optics. The strong coupling of moiré superlattices can result in flat minibands that boost electronic interactions and generate interesting strongly correlated states, including unconventional superconductivity, Mott insulating states, and moiré excitons. However, the impact of adjusting and localizing moiré excitons in Van der Waals heterostructures has yet to be explored experimentally. Here, we present experimental evidence of the localization-enhanced moiré excitons in the twisted WSe₂/WS₂/WSe₂ heterotrilayer with type-II band alignments. At low temperatures, we observed multiple excitons splitting in the twisted WSe₂/WS₂/WSe₂ heterotrilayer, which is manifested as multiple sharp emission lines, in stark contrast to the moiré excitonic behavior of the twisted WSe₂/WS₂ heterobilayer (which has a linewidth 4 times wider). This is due to the enhancement of the two moiré potentials in the twisted heterotrilayer, enabling highly localized moiré excitons at the interface. The confinement effect of moiré potential on moiré excitons is further demonstrated by changes in temperature, laser power, and valley polarization. Our findings offer a new approach for localizing moiré excitons in twist-angle heterostructures, which has the potential for the development of coherent quantum light emitters.

Localized moiré excitons were found in twisted heterotrilayer superlattices, with the moiré potential depth tunable through layer degrees of freedom. This discovery benefits quantum light emitter development.