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At least 217 records · Page 12
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

High-resolution tunnelling spectroscopy of fractional quantum Hall states

Strong interactions between electrons in two-dimensional systems in the presence of a high magnetic field give rise to fractional quantum Hall states that host quasiparticles with a fractional charge and fractional exchange statistics. Here, in this work, we demonstrate high-resolution scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy of fractional quantum Hall states in ultra-clean Bernal-stacked bilayer graphene devices. Spectroscopy measurements show sharp excitations that have been predicted to emerge when electrons fractionalize into bound states of quasiparticles. We found energy gaps for candidate non-abelian fractional states that are larger by a factor of five than those in other related systems, for example, semiconductor heterostructures, and this suggests that bilayer graphene is an ideal platform for manipulating these quasiparticles and for creating topological quantum bits. We also found previously unobserved fractional states in our very clean graphene samples.

quantum Hall↗
DOE OSTI2026

Tunable symmetry breaking in a hexagonal-stacked moiré magnet

Symmetry plays a central role in defining magnetic phases, making tunable symmetry breaking across magnetic transitions highly desirable for discovering non-trivial magnetism. Magnetic moiré superlattices, formed by twisting two-dimensional magnetic crystals, have been theoretically proposed and experimentally explored as platforms for unconventional magnetic states. However, despite recent advances, the ability to tune symmetry breaking in moiré magnetism remains limited, as twisted two-dimensional magnets predominantly inherit the magnetic properties and symmetries of their constituent layers. Here, in this work, we demonstrate a clear evolution of symmetry in hexagonal-stacked twisted double-bilayer CrI 3 as the twist angle increases from 180° to 190°. Although the net magnetization remains zero across this twist-angle range, the magnetic phase breaks only the threefold rotational symmetry at 180°, but it breaks all the rotational, mirror and time-reversal symmetries at intermediate twist angles between 181° and 185°, and all broken symmetries are recovered at 190°. This pronounced symmetry breaking at intermediate twist angles is accompanied by metamagnetic behaviour, evidenced by symmetric double hysteresis loops around zero magnetic field. Together, these results reveal that hexagonal-stacked twisted double-bilayer CrI3 at intermediate twist angles hosts a distinct moiré magnetic phase, featuring periodic in-plane spin textures with broken rotational, mirror and time-reversal symmetries.

Sun, Zeliang (ORCID:0009000770748064)↗
DOE OSTI2024

Signatures of ambient pressure superconductivity in thin film La 3 Ni 2 O 7

Recently, the bilayer nickelate La 3 Ni 2 O 7 has been discovered as a new superconductor with transition temperature T c near 80 K under high pressure. Despite extensive theoretical and experimental work to understand the nature of its superconductivity, the requirement of extreme pressure restricts the use of many experimental probes and limits its application potential. Here, in this work, we present signatures of superconductivity in La 3 Ni 2 O 7 thin films at ambient pressure, facilitated by the application of epitaxial compressive strain. The onset T c varies approximately from 26 K to 42 K, with higher T c values correlating with smaller in-plane lattice constants. We observed the co-existence of other Ruddlesden-Popper phases within the films and dependence of transport behavior with ozone annealing, suggesting that the observed low zero resistance T c of around 2 K can be attributed to stacking defects, grain boundaries, and oxygen stoichiometry. This finding initiates numerous opportunities to stabilize and study superconductivity in bilayer nickelates at ambient pressure, and to facilitate the broad understanding of the ever-growing number of high temperature and unconventional superconductors in the transition metal oxides.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2024

Chiral limit and origin of topological flat bands in twisted transition metal dichalcogenide homobilayers

Abstract The observation of zero field fractional quantum Hall analogs in twisted transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) asks for a deeper understanding of what mechanisms lead to topological flat bands in two-dimensional heterostructures, and what makes TMDs an excellent platform for topologically ordered phases, surpassing twisted bilayer graphene. To this aim, we explore the chiral limits of massive Dirac theories applicable toC 3 -symmetric moiré materials, and show their relevance for both bilayer graphene and TMD homobilayers. In the latter, the Berry curvature of valence bands leads to relativistic corrections of the moiré potential that promote band flattening, and permit a limit with exactly flat bands with nonzero Chern number. The relativistic corrections enter as alayer-orbit coupling, analogous to spin-orbit coupling for relativistic Dirac fermions, which we show is non-negligible on the moiré scale. The Berry curvature of the TMD monolayers therefore plays an essential role in the flattening of moiré Chern bands in these heterostructures.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Enhanced spin pumping in heterostructures of coupled ferrimagnetic garnets

Spin pumping has significant implications for spintronics, providing a mechanism to manipulate and transport spins for information processing. Understanding and harnessing spin currents through spin pumping is critical for the development of efficient spintronic devices. The use of a magnetic insulator with low damping enhances the signal-to-noise ratio in crucial experiments such as spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) and spin pumping. A magnetic insulator coupled with a heavy metal or quantum material offers a more straightforward model system, especially when investigating spin-charge interconversion processes to greater accuracy. This simplicity arises from the absence of unwanted effects caused by conduction electrons unlike in ferromagnetic metals. Here, we investigate the spin pumping in coupled ferrimagnetic (FiM) Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 (YIG)/Tm 3 Fe 5 O 12 (TmIG) bilayers combined with heavy-metal (Pt) using the inverse spin Hall effect. It is observed that magnon transmission occurs at both of the FiMs FMR positions. The enhancement of spin pumping voltage (V sp ) in the FiM garnet heterostructures is observed. The plausible reason might be the interfacial exchange coupling between FiMs. The modulation of V sp is achieved by tuning the bilayer structure. Further, the spin mixing conductance for these coupled systems is found to be ≈ 10 18 m –2 . Furthermore, our findings describe a coupled FiM system for the investigation of magnon coupling providing opportunities for magnonic devices.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Continuously tunable uniaxial strain control of van der Waals heterostructure devices

Uniaxial strain has been widely used as a powerful tool for investigating and controlling the properties of quantum materials. However, existing strain techniques have so far mostly been limited to use with bulk crystals. Although recent progress has been made in extending the application of strain to two-dimensional van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures, these techniques have been limited to optical characterization and extremely simple electrical device geometries. Here, we report a piezoelectric-based in situ uniaxial strain technique enabling simultaneous electrical transport and optical spectroscopy characterization of dual-gated vdW heterostructure devices. Critically, our technique remains compatible with vdW heterostructure devices of arbitrary complexity fabricated on conventional silicon/silicon dioxide wafer substrates. We demonstrate a large and continuously tunable strain of up to –0.15% at millikelvin temperatures, with larger strain values also likely achievable. We quantify the strain transmission from the silicon wafer to the vdW heterostructure, and further demonstrate the ability of strain to modify the electronic properties of twisted bilayer graphene. Our technique provides a highly versatile new method for exploring the effect of uniaxial strain on both the electrical and optical properties of vdW heterostructures and can be easily extended to include additional characterization techniques.

Electrical properties and parameters↗
DOE OSTI2026

A large interlaboratory electron diffraction study of monolayer graphene

Standardisation of data collection and analysis is essential to enable commercialisation of 2D materials in a wide range of technologies. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED) in the transmission electron microscope (TEM) is one of the key methods for distinguishing monolayer from bilayer and few-layer graphene by comparing the 1st and 2nd order diffraction spot intensities. Yet there are many factors that can affect the reliability of data collection and interpretation, causing the measurement of monolayer samples to deviate from the literature boundary condition of $I_{\{\bar{2}110\}}$$/$$I_{\{1\bar{1}00\}}$ < 1 for monolayer graphene (1LG). Here we present the results of a large interlaboratory SAED comparison study, where 15 international laboratories measured and analysed nominally identical samples of chemical vapour deposited graphene. Large variations were observed in the measured ratios of diffraction spot intensities, with the largest variance associated with poor quality SAED data resulting from inadequate specimen handling and storage. To inform the reliable determination of monolayer thickness from SAED patterns we provide a description of best practice for specimen handling, TEM operation, data collection and analysis. This work was undertaken within VAMAS Technical Working Area 41: Graphene and related 2D materials—Project 9, the results of which have been directly incorporated into ISO/TS 21356–2 for the characterisation of graphene sheets. We find that when this methodology is followed, 1LG can be distinguished from bilayer or thicker material with high confidence where analysis of a single SAED pattern gives $I_{\{\bar{2}110\}}$$/$$I_{\{1\bar{1}00\}}$ < 1.2, even in the absence of precise specimen tilting.

2D materials↗
DOE OSTI2025

Unconventional Superconductivity Mediated by Exciton Density Wave Fluctuations

Synthetic platforms afford an unparalleled degree of controllability in realizing strongly correlated phases of matter. In this Letter, we study the possibility of electrically tunable exciton-mediated superconductivity arising in charge-imbalanced bilayer semiconductors. Focusing on the case of a bilayer semiconductor heterostructure, we identify the gating conditions required to achieve exciton density wave order within a self-consistent Hartree-Fock approximation. We analyze the role of the coupling of excitonic fluctuations to the fermionic charge carriers to find that the Goldstone mode of the density wave order can mediate attractive interactions leading to superconductivity. Furthermore, when the system is close to the density wave ordering, the interactions mediated by low-energy exciton modes can support an interlayer pair-density wave superconductor of anisotropic character. We discuss experimental signatures associated with these phenomena.

excitons↗
DOE OSTI2025

Possible Spin-Triplet Excitonic Insulator in the Ultraquantum Limit of HfTe 5

More than 50 years ago, excitonic insulators formed by the pairing of electrons and holes due to Coulomb interactions were first predicted [A. N. Kozlov and L. A. Maksimov, Sov. J. Exp. Theor. Phys. 21, 790 (1965); L. V. Keldysh and Y. V. Kopaev, Sov. Phys. Solid State 6, 2219 (1965); D. Jérome, T. M. Rice, and W. Kohn, Phys. Rev. 158, 462 (1967)]. Since then, excitonic insulators have been observed in various classes of materials, including quantum Hall bilayers, graphite, transition metal chalcogenides, and more recently in moiré superlattices. In these excitonic insulators, an electron and a hole with the same spin bind together, and the resulting exciton is a spin singlet. Here, we report the experimental observation of a spin-triplet excitonic insulator in the ultra-quantum limit of a three-dimensional topological material HfTe 5 . We observe that the spin-polarized zeroth Landau bands dispersing along the field direction cross each other beyond a characteristic magnetic field in HfTe 5 , forming the one-dimensional Weyl mode. Transport measurements reveal the emergence of a gap of about 2⁢5⁢0 μ⁢eV when the field surpasses a critical threshold. By performing the material-specific modeling, we identify this gap as a consequence of a spin-triplet exciton formation, where electrons and holes with opposite spin form bound states, and the translational symmetry is preserved. The system reaches charge neutrality following the gap opening, as evidenced by the zero Hall conductivity over a wide magnetic field range (10–72 T). In conclusion, our finding of the spin-triplet excitonic insulator paves the way for studying novel spin transport including spin superfluidity, spin Josephson currents, and Coulomb drag of spin currents in analogy to the transport properties associated with the layer pseudospin in quantum Hall bilayers.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2025

General trends of superconducting pairing and magnetic correlations in the Ruddlesden-Popper nickelate 𝑚-layered superconductors La 𝑚+1 ⁢Ni 𝑚 ⁢O 3⁢𝑚+1

Here, we report a comprehensive theoretical analysis of the Ruddlesden-Popper layered nickelates La 𝑚+1 ⁢Ni 𝑚 ⁢O 3⁢𝑚+1 (𝑚 = 1 to 6) under pressure. These materials have recently received significant attention due to the discovery of superconductivity in some nickelates under pressure. Our results suggest that, while these Ruddlesden-Popper layered nickelates display many similarities, they also show noticeable differences. One of the common features of La 𝑚+1 ⁢Ni 𝑚 ⁢O 3⁢𝑚+1 is that the electronic states near the Fermi level are mainly contributed by Ni 3⁢𝑑 orbitals, slightly hybridized with O 2⁢𝑝 orbitals. The Ni 𝑑 3⁢𝑧 2 −𝑟 2 orbitals display bonding-antibonding, or bonding-antibonding-nonbonding, characteristic splittings, depending on the even or odd number of stacking layers 𝑚. In addition, the ratio of the in-plane interorbital hopping between 𝑑 3⁢𝑧 2 −𝑟 2 and 𝑑 𝑥 2 −𝑦 2 orbitals and in-plane intraorbital hopping between 𝑑 𝑥 2 −𝑦 2 orbitals was found to be large in La 𝑚+1 ⁢Ni 𝑚 ⁢O 3⁢𝑚+1 (𝑚 = 1 to 6), and this ratio increases from 𝑚 = 1 to 𝑚 = 6, suggesting that the in-plane hybridization will increase as the layer number 𝑚 increases. In contrast to the dominant 𝑠 ± -wave state driven by spin fluctuations in the bilayer La 3 ⁢Ni 2⁢ O 7 and trilayer La 4 ⁢Ni 3 ⁢O 10 , two nearly degenerate 𝑑 𝑥 2 −𝑦 2 -wave and 𝑠 ± -wave leading states were obtained in the four-layer stacking La 5⁢ Ni 4 ⁢O 13 and five-layer stacking La 6 ⁢Ni 5 ⁢O 16 . The leading 𝑠 ± -wave state was recovered in the six-layer material La 7 ⁢Ni 6 ⁢O 19 with slightly higher calculated pairing strength 𝜆 than that of the 𝑑 𝑥 2 −𝑦 2 -wave state. All this evidence suggests that both 𝑠 ± -wave and 𝑑 𝑥 2 −𝑦 2 -wave channels are strongly competing in the high-order niceklates based on our random-phase approximation calculations. In general, at the level of the random-phase approximation treatment, the superconducting transition temperature 𝑇 𝑐 decreases in stoichiometric bulk systems from the bilayer La 3 ⁢Ni 2 ⁢O 7 to the six-layer La 7 ⁢Ni 6 ⁢O 19 , despite the 𝑚-dependent dominant pairing. Both in-plane and out-of-plane magnetic correlations are found to be quite complex. Within the in-plane direction, we obtained the peak of the magnetic susceptibility at 𝐪 = (0.6⁢𝜋, 0.6⁢𝜋) for La 5 ⁢Ni 4 ⁢O 13 (𝑚 = 4) and La 7 ⁢Ni 6 ⁢O 19 (𝑚 = 6) and at 𝐪 = (0.7⁢𝜋, 0.7⁢𝜋) for La 6⁢ Ni 5⁢ O 16 (𝑚 = 5). Along the out-of-plane direction, four layers are coupled as ↓−↑−↑−↓ in La 5 ⁢Ni 4⁢ O 13 , five layers are coupled as ↑−↑−↓−↑−↑ in La 6 ⁢Ni 5 ⁢O 16 , and six layers are coupled as ↑−↓−↓−↑−↑−↓ in La 7 ⁢Ni 6 ⁢O 19 .

Zhang, Yang [Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (Un↗
DOE OSTI2026

Entropy of Strongly Correlated Electrons in a Partially Filled Landau Level

We use high-resolution chemical potential measurements to extract the entropy of monolayer and bilayer graphene in the quantum Hall regime via the Maxwell relation [(𝑑⁢𝜇)/(𝑑⁢𝑇)]| 𝑁 =−[(𝑑⁢𝑆)/(𝑑⁢𝑁)]| 𝑇 . Measuring the entropy from 𝑇 = 300 K down to 𝑇 = 200 mK, we identify the sequential emergence of quantum Hall ferromagnetism, fractional quantum Hall states, and various charge orders by comparing the measured entropy in different temperature regimes with theoretical models. At the lowest temperature of 𝑇 ≈ 200 mK we perform a detailed study of the entropy near even-denominator fractional quantum Hall states in bilayer graphene, and comment on the possible topological origin of the observed excess entropy.

Assouline, Alexandre [University of California, Sa↗
DOE OSTI2024

Spin-flop coupling at L⁢a 0.5 ⁢S⁢r 0.5 ⁢Fe⁢O 3 /L⁢a 0.7⁢ S⁢r 0.3 ⁢Mn⁢O 3 interfaces

Antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics offer several benefits compared to their ferromagnetic (FM) counterparts, such as high storage capacity and faster processing speed, however, difficulties in manipulating and detecting the AFM moments impede their implementation. Spin-flop coupling, the interfacial perpendicular coupling between FM and AFM moments, can be utilized to control the orientation of AFM moments with the application of moderate magnetic fields on the scale of tenths of a Tesla. Here, in this work, epitaxial bilayers of AFM La 0.5 Sr 0.5 FeO 3 (LSFO)/FM La 0.7 Sr 0.3 MnO 3 (LSMO) with fixed LSMO thickness (~85 u.c.) and LSFO thicknesses varying from 10 to 50 u.c. were investigated to determine the effect of Sr doping and La 1-x Sr x FeO 3 magnetocrystalline anisotropy on the strength of spin-flop coupling. X-ray magnetic linear dichroism demonstrated that the spin-flop coupling strength decreased with increasing LSFO layer thickness, persisting at a thickness of 50 u.c. (~20 nm). Furthermore, photoemission electron microscopy revealed a domain-by-domain correlation between the FM and AFM domains consistent with the perpendicular orientation dictated by spin-flop coupling. These results demonstrate that LSFO/LSMO bilayers have the potential to serve as a model materials system for AFM spin transport measurements.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2024

Electronic structure, self-doping, and superconducting instability in the alternating single-layer trilayer stacking nickelates La 3 ⁢Ni 2 ⁢O 7

Motivated by the recently proposed alternating single-layer trilayer stacking structure for the nickelate La 3 ⁢Ni 2 ⁢O 7 , we comprehensively study this system using ab initio and random-phase approximation techniques. Here, our analysis unveils similarities between this novel La 3⁢ Ni 2 ⁢O 7 structure and other Ruddlesden-Popper nickelate superconductors, such as a similar charge-transfer gap value and orbital-selective behavior of the eg orbitals. Pressure primarily increases the bandwidths of the Ni e g bands, suggesting an enhancement of the itinerant properties of those e g states. By changing the cell volume ratio V/V 0 from 0.9 to 1.10, we found that the bilayer structure in La 3 ⁢Ni 2 ⁢O 7 always has lower energy than the single-layer trilayer stacking La 3 ⁢Ni 2 ⁢O 7 . In addition, we observe a “self-doping” effect (compared to the average 1.5 electrons per eg orbital per site of the entire structure) from the trilayer to the single-layer sublattices and this effect will be enhanced by overall electron doping. Moreover, we find a leading d x 2 -y 2 -wave pairing state that is restricted to the single layer. Because the effective coupling between the single layers is very weak, due to the nonsuperconducting trilayer in-between, this suggests that the superconducting transition temperature T c in this structure should be much lower than in the bilayer structure.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2025

Defect Complexes in CrSBr Revealed Through Electron Microscopy and Deep Learning

Atomic defects underpin the properties of van der Waals materials, and their understanding is essential for advancing quantum and energy technologies. Scanning transmission electron microscopy is a powerful tool for defect identification in atomically thin materials, and extending it to multilayer and beam-sensitive materials would accelerate their exploration. Here, we establish a comprehensive defect library in a bilayer of the magnetic quasi-1D semiconductor CrSBr by combining atomic-resolution imaging, deep learning, and calculations. We apply a custom-developed machine learning work flow to detect, classify, and average point vacancy defects. This classification enables us to uncover several distinct Cr interstitial defect complexes, combined Cr and Br vacancy defect complexes, and lines of vacancy defects that extend over many unit cells. We show that their occurrence is in agreement with our computed structures and binding energy densities, reflecting the intriguing layer interlocked crystal structure of CrSBr. Our ab initio calculations show that the interstitial defect complexes give rise to highly localized electronic states. These states are of particular interest due to the reduced electronic dimensionality and magnetic properties of CrSBr and are, furthermore, predicted to be optically active. Our results broaden the scope of defect studies in challenging materials and reveal new defect types in bilayer CrSBr that can be extrapolated to the bulk and to over 20 materials belonging to the same FeOCl structural family.

deep learning↗
DOE OSTI2024

Cross-Cap Defects and Fault-Tolerant Logical Gates in the Surface Code and the Honeycomb Floquet Code

We consider the Z 2 toric code, surface code, and Floquet code defined on a nonorientable surface, which can be considered as families of codes extending Shor’s nine-qubit code. We investigate the fault-tolerant logical gates of the Z 2 toric code in this setup, which corresponds to e ↔ m exchanging symmetry of the underlying Z 2 gauge theory. We find that nonorientable geometry provides a new way for the emergent symmetry to act on the code space, and discover the new realization of the fault-tolerant Hadamard gate of the two-dimensional surface code with a single cross cap connecting the vertices nonlocally along a slit, dubbed a nonorientable surface code. This Hadamard gate can be realized by a constant-depth local unitary circuit modulo nonlocality caused by a cross cap. Via folding, the nonorientable surface code can be turned into a bilayer local quantum code, where the folded cross cap is equivalent to a bilayer twist terminated on a gapped boundary and the logical Hadamard only contains local gates with intralayer couplings when being away from the cross cap, as opposed to the interlayer couplings on each site needed in the case of the folded surface code. We further obtain the complete logical Clifford gate set for a stack of nonorientable surface codes and similarly for codes defined on Klein-bottle geometries. We then construct the honeycomb Floquet code in the presence of a single cross cap, and find that the period of the sequential Pauli measurements acts as a H Z logical gate on the single logical qubit, where the cross cap enriches the dynamics compared with the orientable case. We find that the dynamics of the honeycomb Floquet code is precisely described by a condensation operator of the Z 2 gauge theory, and illustrate the exotic dynamics of our code in terms of a condensation operator supported at a nonorientable surface. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Temperature-Agnostic Pt/Au Ohmic Contacts on n -Type Gallium Nitride for Self-Aligned MOSFETs

Five alternative metals are investigated as ohmic contacts to n-GaN including Cr/Au, Mo/Au, Pt/Au, Pd/Au, and Ge/Au. Ti-based contacts are traditionally used for ohmic contacts on n-GaN. However, conventional Ti/Al/Ni/Au metallization is found to be incompatible with a self-aligned process for GaN trench MOSFETs due to wet etch restrictions. Therefore, an alternative metallization is needed that is unreactive to the etch chemistry used in the self-aligned process. Additionally, the contact should remain ohmic following anneal at 900 °C so that contact formation can precede the anneal required for p-dopant activation. Here, in the present work, an n-GaN bilayer, consisting of a thin heavily doped contact layer (n 0 = 1 × 10 20 cm −3 ) atop a thick lesser doped layer, is used to demonstrate ohmic contacts of alternative metals with low specific contact resistance and extended thermal budget. Cr/Au ohmic contacts are demonstrated up to anneal temperatures of 800 °C, an increase of 200 °C compared to the highest known reports for Cr/Au contacts on n-GaN. Pt/Au metallization is demonstrated as an ohmic contact to n-GaN for the first time and exhibits true temperature-agnostic behavior up to anneal temperatures of 900 °C with specific contact resistance that is near parity with Ti/Al/Ni/Au. The temperature-agnostic behavior of Pt/Au ohmic contacts on the n-GaN bilayer, in addition to chemical compatibility with the self-aligned process, positions Pt/Au contacts as a key enabling element for self-aligned trench MOSFETs on GaN.

Reilly, Kevin James [Sandia National Laboratories ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Anomalous superconductivity in twisted MoTe 2 nanojunctions

Introducing superconductivity in topological materials can lead to innovative electronic phases and device functionalities. Here, we present a unique strategy for quantum engineering of superconducting junctions in moiré materials through direct, on-chip, and fully encapsulated 2D crystal growth. We achieve robust and designable superconductivity in Pd-metalized twisted bilayer molybdenum ditelluride (MoTe 2 ) and observe anomalous superconducting effects in high-quality junctions across ~20 moiré cells. Unexpectedly, the junction develops enhanced, instead of weakened, superconducting behaviors, exhibiting fluctuations to a higher critical magnetic field compared to its adjacent Pd 7 MoTe 2 superconductor. In addition, the critical current further exhibits a notable V-shaped minimum at zero magnetic field. These features are unexpected in conventional Josephson junctions and absent in junctions of natural bilayer MoTe 2 created using the same approach. We discuss implications of these observations, including the possible formation of mixed even- and odd-parity superconductivity at the moiré junctions. Our results also demonstrate a pathway to engineer and investigate superconductivity in fractional Chern insulators.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Neuromorphic ionic computing in droplet interface synapses

Ionic devices with memory capabilities can emulate neural functionality, enabling neuromorphic computing and biomedical applications. In this study, we report an ionic spiking synapse based on aqueous droplet interface bilayer assembly. Under stepwise triangular voltages, the device displays coupled memcapacitive-memristive behavior, showing noncrossing pinched hysteretic I-V loops. This hysteretic ion dynamics can be regulated by modifying bilayer components, reconstituting protein channels, or adjusting droplet assembly configuration. Droplet interface synapses (DIS) exhibit fundamental neuromorphic behaviors such as paired-pulse facilitation/depression, spike rate–dependent plasticity, Hebbian learning, and short-term associative learning under classical conditioning. We also used reservoir computing with DIS to implement two learning algorithms: a classification algorithm that recognizes handwritten digits and a reinforcement learning algorithm that learns to play a board game of tic-tac-toe.

Li, Zhongwu [Lawrence Livermore National Laborator↗