Controlling Rotation of Two-Dimensional Material Flakes

SZ Zhu and P Pochet and HT Johnson, ACS NANO, 13, 6925-6931 (2019).

DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.9b01794

Interlayer rotational alignment in van der Waals (vdW) structures of two-dimensional (2D) materials couples strongly to electronic properties and, therefore, has significant technological implications. Nevertheless, controlling the rotation of an arbitrary 2D material flake remains a challenge in the development of rotation-tunable electronics, for the emerging field of twistronics. In this article, we reveal a general moire-driven mechanism that governs the interlayer rotation. Controlling the moire can therefore hold promise for controlling the interlayer rotation. We further demonstrate mismatch strain engineering as a useful tool to design the interlayer rotation via changing the energy landscape of moire within a finite-sized region. The robustness and programmable nature of our approach arise from moire symmetry, energetics, and mechanics. Our approach provides another possibility to the on-demand design of rotation-tunable electronics.

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