Physics - The Anthony J Leggett Institute for Condensed Matter Theory Seminar

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Special Institute for Condensed Matter Theory Seminar: Quasiperidoicity, band topology and moiré graphene

Event Type
Seminar/Symposium
Sponsor
The Institute for Condensed Matter Theory
Date
Dec 14, 2020   11:00 am  
Speaker
Dan Mao, MIT
Views
34

A number of moir\'e graphene systems have nearly flat topological bands where electron motion is strongly correlated. Though microscopically these systems are only quasiperiodic,  they can typically be treated as translation invariant to an excellent approximation. We reconsider this question for magic angle twisted bilayer graphene that is nearly aligned with a hexagonal boron nitride(h-BN) substrate. I will talk about the effect of the periodic potential induced by h-BN on the low energy physics. The combination of this potential and the moir\'e lattice produced by the twisted graphene  generates a quasi-periodic term  that depends on the alignment angle between h-BN and the moir\'e graphene. We find that the alignment angle has a significant impact on both the band gap near charge neutrality and the behavior of electrical transport. We also introduce and study toy models to illustrate how a quasi-periodic potential can give rise to localization and change in transport properties of topological bands. I will also talk about the subtlety of coupling to external electromagnetic field in these models.

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