Reconfiguring Moiré Quantum Materials on Demand through Strain Engineering

The rise of moiré materials based on twisted layers of two-dimensional (2D) crystals constitutes arguably one of the most exciting opportunities in the manipulation of synthetic quantum materials. Moiré materials provide an unprecedented ability to create highly tunable lattices of strongly correlated fermions with energy scales and interaction strengths that have previously been unobtainable in ‘conventional’ or other synthetic quantum materials. These properties endow moiré materials with the ability to realize experimental implementations of quantum Hamiltonians such as the Hubbard model and provide new insights into regimes not accessible by the current theoretical approaches. However, to unlock the true potential of moiré materials and navigate their rich quantum phase diagrams, a new functionality needs to be added: a wide-ranging in-situ tunability of the moiré lattice geometry and Hubbard energy scales at cryogenic temperature.ReMolDS aims to address this challenge by introducing cryogenic in-situ strain engineering to moiré heterostructures. Our project will focus on semiconducting twisted bilayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) as a prototype system. The superlubricity and robust mechanical properties of 2D materials will be leveraged to achieve extensive in-situ heterostrain at cryogenic temperatures. This innovative approach will enable precise control over the moiré geometry and periodicity, significantly expanding the tunability of these materials. We will employ optical techniques to investigate the emergent quantum phase diagrams as the moiré geometry transitions between different lattice structures, from triangular to anisotropic triangular, rectangular, and even quasi-1D configurations. Our unprecedented ability to in-situ tune and optically readout the energy scales of moiré materials with reconfigurable lattice geometries at cryogenic temperatures will guide the quest for novel exotic and technologically relevant phases of matter.