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Zultak J, Magorrian SJ, Koperski M, Garner A, Hamer MJ, Tóvári E, Novoselov KS, Zhukov AA, Zou Y, Wilson NR, Haigh SJ, Kretinin AV, Fal'ko VI, Gorbachev R. Ultra-thin van der Waals crystals as semiconductor quantum wells. Nat Commun 2020; 11:125. [PMID: 31913279 PMCID: PMC6949292 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-13893-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2019] [Accepted: 11/28/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Control over the quantization of electrons in quantum wells is at the heart of the functioning of modern advanced electronics; high electron mobility transistors, semiconductor and Capasso terahertz lasers, and many others. However, this avenue has not been explored in the case of 2D materials. Here we apply this concept to van der Waals heterostructures using the thickness of exfoliated crystals to control the quantum well dimensions in few-layer semiconductor InSe. This approach realizes precise control over the energy of the subbands and their uniformity guarantees extremely high quality electronic transport in these systems. Using tunnelling and light emitting devices, we reveal the full subband structure by studying resonance features in the tunnelling current, photoabsorption and light emission spectra. In the future, these systems could enable development of elementary blocks for atomically thin infrared and THz light sources based on intersubband optical transitions in few-layer van der Waals materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Zultak
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Samuel J Magorrian
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Maciej Koperski
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Alistair Garner
- Department of Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Matthew J Hamer
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Endre Tóvári
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Kostya S Novoselov
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Alexander A Zhukov
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Yichao Zou
- National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,Department of Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Neil R Wilson
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Sarah J Haigh
- National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,Department of Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Andrey V Kretinin
- National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,Department of Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Vladimir I Fal'ko
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK. .,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK. .,Henry Royce Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
| | - Roman Gorbachev
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK. .,National Graphene Institute, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK. .,Henry Royce Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
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