Journal article
Moire nematic phase in twisted double bilayer graphene
Nature physics, v 18(2), pp 196-202
01 Feb 2022
Abstract
Graphene moire superlattices display electronic flat bands. At integer fillings of these flat bands, energy gaps due to strong electron-electron interactions are generally observed. However, the presence of other correlation-driven phases in twisted graphitic systems at non-integer fillings is unclear. Here, we report the existence of three-fold rotational (C-3) symmetry breaking in twisted double bilayer graphene. Using spectroscopic imaging over large and uniform areas to characterize the direction and degree of C-3 symmetry breaking, we find it to be prominent only at energies corresponding to the flat bands and nearly absent in the remote bands. We demonstrate that the magnitude of the rotational symmetry breaking does not depend on the degree of the heterostrain or the displacement field, being instead a manifestation of an interaction-driven electronic nematic phase. We show that the nematic phase is a primary order that arises from the normal metal state over a wide range of doping away from charge neutrality. Our modelling suggests that the nematic instability is not associated with the local scale of the graphene lattice, but is an emergent phenomenon at the scale of the moire lattice.
Observations of an electronic nematic phase in twisted double bilayer graphene expand the number of moire materials where this interaction-driven state exists.
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Details
- Title
- Moire nematic phase in twisted double bilayer graphene
- Creators
- Carmen Rubio-Verdu - Columbia UniversitySimon Turkel - Columbia UniversityYuan Song - Columbia UniversityLennart Klebl - RWTH Aachen UniversityRhine Samajdar - Harvard UniversityMathias S. Scheurer - Universität InnsbruckJorn W. F. Venderbos - Drexel University, Materials Science and EngineeringKenji Watanabe - National Institute for Materials ScienceTakashi Taniguchi - National Institute for Materials ScienceHector Ochoa - Columbia UniversityLede Xian - Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of MatterDante M. Kennes - Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of MatterRafael M. Fernandes - University of MinnesotaAngel Rubio - Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of MatterAbhay N. Pasupathy - Columbia University
- Publication Details
- Nature physics, v 18(2), pp 196-202
- Publisher
- NATURE PORTFOLIO
- Number of pages
- 8
- Grant note
- 844271 / European Union Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant; European Union (EU); Marie Curie Actions DMR-1420634 / NSF MRSEC programme; National Science Foundation (NSF) JPMJCR15F3 / CREST; Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology (CREST) Max Planck Institute-New York City Center for Non-Equilibrium Quantum Phenomena 844271 / Marie Curie Actions (MSCA); Marie Curie Actions FA9550-16-1-0601 / Air Force Office of Scientific Research; United States Department of Defense; Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) JP20H00354 / JSPS KAKENHI; Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (MEXT); Japan Society for the Promotion of Science; Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) DE-SC0020045 / DOE-BES; United States Department of Energy (DOE) DE-SC0020045 / U.S. Department of Energy (DOE); United States Department of Energy (DOE) DMR-2002850 / National Science Foundation; National Science Foundation (NSF)
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Physics; Materials Science and Engineering
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000733695800006
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85121653583
- Other Identifier
- 991021860760804721
InCites Highlights
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Physics, Multidisciplinary