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DOE OSTI2025

Holographic Quantum Simulation of Strongly Correlated Electron Systems

The project aimed to demonstrate a new holographic quantum simulation approach and co‐ designed quantum hardware to tackle three specific problems that fall within the broad umbrella of unraveling the physics of strongly correlated electron systems (SCES). These tasks were: (1) holographic preparation of ground‐ and thermal‐ states of correlated magnetic and electronic systems including quasi‐2d frustrated‐spin, Fermi‐Hubbard, and fractional quantum Hall (FQH) systems, (2) holographic‐simulation of long‐time out‐of‐equilibrium dynamics and (3) holographic analogs of embedding methods such as dynamical mean‐ field theory (DMFT) and density‐matrix embedding theory (DMET) to solve systems with complex structure or long‐range interactions. These tasks are prototypes for the kinds of material simulation problems of interest to BES, such as the simulation of multiferroic materials, perovskite photovoltaics and high‐temperature superconductors, that tax the capabilities of the most powerful classical supercomputers.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2025

Emergent Dimer-Model Topological Order and Quasiparticle Excitations in Liquid Crystals: Combinatorial Vortex Lattices

Liquid crystals have proven to provide a versatile experimental and theoretical platform for studying topological objects such as vortices, skyrmions, and hopfions. In parallel, in hard condensed matter physics, the concept of topological phases and topological order has been introduced in the context of spin liquids to investigate emergent phenomena like quantum Hall effects and high-temperature superconductivity. Here, we bridge these two seemingly disparate perspectives on topology in physics. Combining experiments and simulations, we show how topological defects in liquid crystals can be used as versatile building blocks to create complex, highly degenerate topological phases, which we refer to as “combinatorial vortex lattices” (CVLs). CVLs exhibit extensive residual entropy and support locally stable quasiparticle excitations in the form of charge-conserving topological monopoles, which can act as mobile information carriers and be linked via Dirac strings. CVLs can be rewritten and reconfigured on demand, endowed with various symmetries, and modified through laser-induced topological surgery—an essential capability for information storage and retrieval. We demonstrate experimentally the realization, stability, and precise optical manipulation of CVLs, thus opening new avenues for understanding and technologically exploiting higher-hierarchy topology in liquid crystals and other ordered media.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2025

Electronic commensuration of a spin moiré superlattice in a layered magnetic semimetal

Spin moiré superlattices (SMSs) have been proposed as a magnetic analog of crystallographic moiré systems and a source of electron minibands offering vector-field moiré tunability and Berry curvature effects. However, it has proven challenging to realize an SMS in which a large exchange coupling J is transmitted between conduction electrons and localized spins. Furthermore, most systems have carrier mean free paths l mfp shorter than their spin moiré lattice constant a spin , inhibiting miniband formation. Here, we discover that the layered magnetic semimetal EuAg 4 Sb 2 overcomes these challenges by forming an interface with J ~ 100 milli–electron volts transferred between a Eu triangular lattice and anionic Ag 2 Sb bilayers hosting a two-dimensional electron band in the ballistic regime (l mfp >> a spin ). The system realizes an SMS with a spin commensurate with the Fermi momentum, leading to a marked quenching of the transport response from miniband formation. Our findings demonstrate an approach to magnetically engineering moiré superlattices and a potential route to an emergent spin-driven quantum Hall state.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2024

Enhancing MnBi 2 Te 4 Stability by Doping

MnBi 2 Te 4 (MBT) is an intrinsically magnetic topological material that possesses unique properties due to the quantum Hall effect. However, the low Mn–Bi mixed antisite formation energy is detrimental to these properties as it alters the long-range magnetic ordering in the Mn layer. Therefore, it is crucial to destabilize the antisite defects in MBT while preserving the favorable electronic properties. Here, to this end, we utilized a screening approach to understand the role of dopants in the Mn and Bi sites. We find that Sc, Y, and La dopings prefer substitutions on the Bi site and significantly increase the Mn–Bi antisite defect formation energy. We find that the contribution from the empty s and d states of Sc, Y, and La around the Fermi level is insignificant. However, at the high concentration limit, the Bi–Te octahedra are significantly modified with doping, leading to important changes in the band structure.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2024

Electrostatically controlled spin polarization in Graphene-CrSBr magnetic proximity heterostructures

Abstract The magnetic proximity effect can induce a spin dependent exchange shift in the band structure of graphene. This produces a magnetization and a spin polarization of the electron/hole carriers in this material, paving the way for its use as an active component in spintronics devices. The electrostatic control of this spin polarization in graphene has however never been demonstrated so far. We show that interfacing graphene with the van der Waals antiferromagnet CrSBr results in an unconventional manifestation of the quantum Hall effect, which can be attributed to the presence of counterflowing spin-polarized edge channels originating from the spin-dependent exchange shift in graphene. We extract an exchange shift ranging from 27 – 32 meV, and show that it also produces an electrostatically tunable spin polarization of the electron/hole carriers in graphene ranging from − 50% to + 69% in the absence of a magnetic field. This proof of principle provides a starting point for the use of graphene as an electrostatically tunable source of spin current and could allow this system to generate a large magnetoresistance in gate tunable spin valve devices.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗

DOE OSTI2024

Electronic rotons and Wigner crystallites in a two-dimensional dipole liquid

A key concept proposed by Landau to explain superfluid liquid helium is the elementary excitation of quantum particles called rotons1–8. The irregular arrangement of atoms in a liquid leads to the aperiodic dispersion of rotons, which played a pivotal role in understanding fractional quantum Hall liquids (magneto-rotons)9,10 and the supersolidity of Bose–Einstein condensates11–13. Even for a two-dimensional electron or dipole liquid, in the absence of a magnetic field, the repulsive interactions have been predicted to form a roton minimum14–19, which can be used to trace the transition to Wigner crystals20–24 and superconductivity25–27, although this has not yet been observed. Here, we report the observation of such electronic rotons in a two-dimensional dipole liquid of alkali-metal ions donating electrons to surface layers of black phosphorus. Our data reveal the striking aperiodic dispersion of rotons, which is characterized by a local minimum of energy at finite momentum. As the density of dipoles decreases so that interactions dominate over the kinetic energy, the roton gap reduces to 0, as in a crystal, signalling Wigner crystallization. Our model shows the importance of short-range order arising from repulsion between dipoles, which can be viewed as the formation of Wigner crystallites (bubbles or stripes) floating in the sea of a Fermi liquid. Our results reveal that the primary origin of electronic rotons (and the pseudogap) is strong correlations.

Park, Soobin↗

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

Optimization of submicron Ni/Au/Ge contacts to an AlGaAs/GaAs two-dimensional electron gas

We report on fabrication and performance of sub-micrometer Ni/Au/Ge contacts to a two-dimensional electron gas in an AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructure. Utilizing scanning transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and low temperature electrical measurements, we investigate the relationship between contact performance and the mechanical and chemical properties of the annealed metal stack. Contact geometry and crystallographic orientation significantly impact performance. Our results indicate that the spatial distribution of germanium in the annealed contact plays a central role in the creation of high transmission contacts. We characterize the transmission of our contacts at high magnetic fields in the quantum Hall regime. Our work establishes that contacts with an area of 0.5 μm2 and resistance less than 400 Ω can be fabricated with high yield.

Physics↗

DOE OSTI2026

Anyonic Membranes and Pontryagin Statistics

Anyons, unique to two spatial dimensions, underlie extraordinary phenomena such as the fractional quantum Hall effect, but their generalization to higher dimensions has remained elusive. The topology of Eilenberg-MacLane spaces constrains the loop statistics to be only bosonic or fermionic in any dimension. In this work, we introduce the novel anyonic statistics for membrane excitations in four dimensions. Analogous to the $\mathbb{Z}_N$-particle exhibiting $\mathbb{Z}_{N\times \gcd(2,N)}$ anyonic statistics in two dimensions, we show that the $\mathbb{Z}_N$-membrane possesses $\mathbb{Z}_{N\times \gcd(3,N)}$ anyonic statistics in four dimensions. Given unitary volume operators that create membrane excitations on the boundary, we propose an explicit 56-step unitary sequence that detects the membrane statistics. We further analyze the boundary theory of $(5{+}1)$D 1-form $\mathbb{Z}_N$ symmetry-protected topological phases and demonstrate that their domain walls realize all possible anyonic membrane statistics. We then show that the $\mathbb{Z}_3$ subgroup persists in all higher dimensions. In addition to the standard fermionic $\mathbb{Z}_2$ membrane statistics arising from Stiefel-Whitney classes, membranes also exhibit $\mathbb{Z}_3$ statistics associated with Pontryagin classes. We explicitly verify that the 56-step process detects the nontrivial $\mathbb{Z}_3$ statistics in 5, 6, and 7 spatial dimensions. Furthermore, in 7 and higher dimensions, the statistics of membrane excitations stabilize to $\mathbb{Z}_{2} \times \mathbb{Z}_{3}$, with the $\mathbb{Z}_3$ sector consistently captured by this process.

Abstract algebra↗

DOE OSTI2026

Orbital-Dependent Coulomb Drag in Electron-Hole Bilayer Graphene Heterostructures

Here, we report Coulomb drag studies in an electron-hole bilayer graphene heterostructure in a magnetic field, where the orbital, spin, and valley degrees of freedom are lifted by the combined effects of exchange interaction, Zeeman energy, and a vertical displacement field. Our device enables the application of a large vertical displacement field across both layers. In addition to the well-established strong Coulomb drag between the Landau levels with an orbital quantum number 𝑁 = 0, we observe a Coulomb drag signal between the 𝑁 = 1 Landau levels under a suitable vertical displacement field. As the vertical displacement field increases further, the Coulomb drag signal between 𝑁 = 1 Landau levels weakens, and a Coulomb drag signal emerges between the 𝑁 = 0 and 𝑁 = 1 Landau levels. These findings suggest the important roles of the orbital index and the vertical displacement field in interlayer Coulomb interaction within the quantum Hall regime of coupled bilayer systems.

Landau levels↗

DOE OSTI2026

Interlayer Exciton Condensates between Second Landau Level Orbitals in Double Bilayer Graphene

Here, we present Coulomb-drag measurements on a heterostructure comprising two Bernal-stacked bilayer graphene (BLG) sheets separated by a 2.5 nm hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) spacer in the quantum Hall (QH) regime. Using top and bottom gate control, together with an interlayer bias, we independently tune the two BLG layers into either the lowest (N = 0) or second (N = 1) Landau level (LL) orbital and probe their interlayer QH states. When both layers occupy the N = 0 orbital, we observe both interlayer exciton condensates (ECs) at integer total filling and interlayer fractional QH states, echoing the results in double monolayer graphene. In contrast to previous studies, however, when both BLG layers occupy the N = 1 orbital, we also observe quantized drag signals, signifying an interlayer exciton condensate formed between the second LLs. By tuning the layer degree of freedom, we find that this N = 1 EC state arises only when the N = 1 wave function in each BLG is polarized toward the hBN interface to maximize the interlayer Coulomb interaction.

Electrical conductivity↗

DOE OSTI2024

In-plane Wilson loop for measurement of quantized non-Abelian Berry flux

Band topology of anomalous quantum Hall insulators can be precisely addressed by computing the Chern numbers of constituent nondegenerate bands, describing the presence of quantized, Abelian Berry flux through the two-dimensional Brillouin zone. Can Berry flux be captured for the SU (2) Berry connection of two -fold degenerate bands in spinful materials preserving space -inversion ($\mathscr{P}$) and time -reversal ($\mathscr{T}$) symmetries without detailed knowledge of underlying basis? We address this question by investigating the correspondence between a non -Abelian generalization of Stokes' theorem and the manifestly gauge -invariant eigenvalues of Wilson loops computed along in -plane contours which preserve the underlying crystalline symmetry. The importance of this correspondence is elucidated by performing natural number resolved classification of ab initio band structures of three-dimensional, Dirac materials. Further, our work underscores how identification of quantized Berry flux, both Abelian and non -Abelian, offers a unified framework for addressing first -order and higher -order topology of insulators and semimetals.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Disordered Weyl semimetal as an array of coupled Hubbard chains

We demonstrate that a disordered magnetic Weyl semimetal may be mapped onto a two-dimensional array of coupled replicated Hubbard chains, where the Hubbard 𝑈 is directly related to the variance of the disorder potential. This is a three-dimensional generalization of a similar mapping of the two-dimensional quantum Hall plateau transition to a one-dimensional Hubbard chain. Here, we demonstrate that this mapping leads to the conclusion that the Weyl semimetal becomes a diffusive metal with a nonzero density of states at arbitrarily weak disorder, in agreement with recent work. We also discuss the absence of localization in strongly disordered Weyl semimetals from the viewpoint of this mapping.

Mott insulators↗

DOE OSTI2025

Topological triviality of flat Hamiltonians

Landau levels play a key role in theoretical models of the quantum Hall effect. Each Landau level is degenerate, flat, and topologically nontrivial. Motivated by Landau levels, we study tight-binding Hamiltonians whose energy levels are all flat. Here, we demonstrate that in two dimensions, for such Hamiltonians, the flat bands must be topologically trivial. To that end, we show that the projector onto each flat band is necessarily strictly local. Our conclusions do not need the assumption of lattice translational invariance.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

DOE OSTI2024

Flows in the space of interacting chiral boson theories

We study interacting theories of N left-moving and N ¯ right-moving Floreanini-Jackiw bosons in two dimensions. A parametrized family of such theories is shown to enjoy (nonmanifest) Lorentz invariance if and only if its Lagrangian obeys a flow equation driven by a function of the energy-momentum tensor. We discuss the canonical quantization of such theories along classical stress tensor flows, focusing on the case of the root- T T ¯ deformation, where we obtain perturbative results for the deformed spectrum in a certain large-momentum limit. In the special case N = N ¯ , we consider the quantum effective action for the root- T T ¯ -deformed theory by expanding around a general classical background, and we find that the one-loop contribution vanishes for backgrounds with constant scalar gradients. Our analysis can also be interpreted via dual U ( 1 ) Chern-Simons theories in three dimensions, which might be used to describe deformations of charged AdS 3 black holes or quantum Hall systems. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Ebert, Stephen (ORCID:0000000154670155)↗

DOE OSTI2024

Particle-Hole Asymmetric Ferromagnetism and Spin Textures in the Triangular Hubbard-Hofstadter Model

In a lattice model subject to a perpendicular magnetic field, when the lattice constant is comparable to the magnetic length, one enters the “Hofstadter regime,” where continuum Landau levels become fractal magnetic Bloch bands. Strong mixing between bands alters the nature of the resulting quantum phases compared to the continuum limit; lattice potential, magnetic field, and Coulomb interaction must be treated on equal footing. Using determinant quantum Monte Carlo and density matrix renormalization group techniques, we study this regime numerically in the context of the Hubbard-Hofstadter model on a triangular lattice. In the field-filling phase diagram, we find a broad wedge-shaped region of ferromagnetic ground states for filling factor ν ≤ 1 , bounded below by filling factor ν = 1 and bounded above by half filling the lowest Hofstadter subband. We observe signatures of SU(2) quantum Hall ferromagnetism at filling factors ν = 1 and ν = 3 . The phases near ν = 1 are particle-hole asymmetric, and we observe a rapid decrease in ground-state spin polarization consistent with the formation of skyrmions only on the electron doped side. At large fields, above the ferromagnetic wedge, we observe a low-spin metallic region with spin correlations peaked at small momenta. We argue that the phenomenology of this region likely results from exchange interaction mixing fractal Hofstadter subbands. The phase diagram derived beyond the continuum limit points to a rich landscape to explore interaction effects in magnetic Bloch bands. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Ding, Jixun K.↗

DOE OSTI2024

Microwave and rf Spectroscopy of 2D Carrier Systems and Bilayers (Final Technical Report)

We performed microwave spectroscopic studies of two dimensional electron systems (2DES) exhibiting the quantum Hall effect (QHE) in GaAs/Al${_x}$Ga$_{1-x}$As heterostructures. A common theme of the proposed work is electron solids, of which the simplest is the Wigner crystal, a triangular lattice of individual carriers. The solids are stabilized by carrier-carrier interaction and occur under conditions when the kinetic energy of the system is "frozen out" by high magnetic field, $B$. One of the main reasons for microwave spectroscopic study of 2DES is that the solid phases have striking microwave or rf spectra. In the low wave vector ($q$) limit these spectra exhibit a resonance that is understood as a pinning mode, a small collective oscillation of pieces of the solid within the disorder potential. Pinning modes can be very sharp, with quality factors up to around 30, and are valuable as signatures of the electron solids, and can reveal a solid even when standard dc transport shows an insulator, an integer QHE, or even a fractional QHE The pinning mode also is sensitive to the solid properties, and can reveal transitions between solids.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

DOE OSTI2025

Correlated States of Two-dimensional Electron Systems in AlAs Quantum Wells

Two-dimensional (2D) carrier systems confined to modulation-doped semiconductor hetero-structures provide a nearly ideal testing ground for exploring new physical phenomena. At low temperatures and in the presence of a strong magnetic field, these systems exhibit fascinating, often unexpected, many-body states, arising from the strong electron-electron interaction. In our work, we studied various many-body states of different 2D systems. These included 2D electron and hole systems confined to GaAs and also to AlAs quantum wells, including wide quantum wells where the charge distribution is bilayer like. We observed and reported new phenomena in these systems, including new (even-denominator) fractional quantum Hall states, Wigner crystal solid phases, and composite fermion compressible states.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗