COLLOQUIUM 2022
Moire materials: new frontier of quantum matter
| Speaker | Prof Liang Fu, Lawrence C. (1944) and Sarah W. Biedenharn Career Development Associate Professor of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Host | Anjan Soumyanarayanan |
| Date | Thu, 24 Mar @ 9.30 – 10.30 AM |
| Zoom registration link | https://nus-sg.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_MBbAvneWQjuCYwu-7QW5Sw |
Abstract
I will survey recent advances in van der Waals heterostructures formed by stacking two layers of atomically thin materials such as graphene or transition metal dichalcogenides. When the two layers have a small lattice mismatch or rotational misalignment, a long-wavelength moire structure emerges and produces narrow minibands in the electron energy spectrum. Strong electron interaction effects in these minibands give rise to a remarkable variety of quantum states, including Mott/charge transfer insulators, Wigner crystals, and the quantum anomalous Hall state. I will introduce a theoretical description based on generalized Hubbard model to explain these diverse phenomena in a unified way.
Biography
Prof. Liang Fu is an Associate Professor of Physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA.
Prof. Fu has made pioneering contributions to birthing the field of topological quantum materials. This includes the prediction of 3D topological insulators, topological crystalline insulators, nematic superconductors, and material platforms for creating Majorana quasiparticles towards topological quantum computing. He has been recognized for his outstanding early-career contributions with the prestigious 2016 New Horizons in Physics Prize and the 2014 Raymond and Beverly Sackler Prize.
Prof. Fu joined the MIT Physics Department as an Assistant Professor in January 2012. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of Science and Technology of China in 2004, and PhD in Physics from the University of Pennsylvania, USA in 2009. Before coming to MIT, he was a Junior Fellow at Harvard University.