Imaging Valley Excitons in a 2D Semiconductor with Scanning Tunneling Microscope-Induced Luminescence

Geng, Hairui; Tang, Jie; Wu, Yanwei; Yu, Yuanqin; Guest, Jeffrey R.; Zhang, Rui

doi:10.1021/acsnano.3c12555

Title: Imaging Valley Excitons in a 2D Semiconductor with Scanning Tunneling Microscope-Induced Luminescence

Journal Article · 11 March 2024 · ACS Nano

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c12555 · OSTI ID:2520468

Geng, Hairui ^[1]; Tang, Jie ^[1]; Wu, Yanwei ^[1];

^[1];

^[2];

^[1]

Anhui University, Hefei (China)
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Center for Nanoscale Materials (CNM)

Valley excitons dominate the optoelectronic response of transition-metal dichalcogenides and are drastically affected by structural and environmental inhomogeneities localized in these materials. Critical to understanding and controlling these nanoscale excitonic changes is the ability to correlate the imaging of excitonic states with crystalline structures on the atomic scale. Here, in this study, we apply scanning tunneling microscope-induced luminescence microscopy to image valley excitons in a semiconducting transition-metal dichalcogenide monolayer decoupled by a 10 nanometer-thick hexagonal-boron-nitride flake incorporated in a lateral homojunction on an Au electrode surface. This design enables the observation of chiral excitonic emission arising from neutral and charged valley excitons of the monolayer semiconductor at ambipolar voltages with a quantum efficiency up to similar to ~10^-5 photon/electron. The measured light helicity demonstrates considerable circular polarization dependent on the sample voltage, reaching as much as 40%. The real-space luminescence imaging maps$$-$$at subnanometer resolution$$-$$of the valley excitons reveal striking spatial variations associated with localized inhomogeneities, including surface impurities and possibly nanoscale dielectric and/or potential disorders in the monolayer. Our study introduces a promising format for 2D materials to explore and tailor their optoelectronic processes at the atomic scale.

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Research Organization:: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Anhui Province; National Science Foundation of China (NSFC); USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-06CH11357

OSTI ID:: 2520468

Journal Information:: ACS Nano, Journal Name: ACS Nano Journal Issue: 12 Vol. 18; ISSN 1936-0851

Publisher:: American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
WSe2
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imaging of valley excitons
scanning tunneling microscope-induced luminescence

Title: Imaging Valley Excitons in a 2D Semiconductor with Scanning Tunneling Microscope-Induced Luminescence

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