Moiré straintronics: a universal platform for reconfigurable quantum materials

Large-scale two-dimensional (2D) moiré superlattices are revolutionizing designer quantum materials. Electronic interactions, heavily reliant on moiré pattern periodicity and symmetry, dictate emergent properties and phase diagrams. This research establishes strain as a powerful tool for modifying moiré periodicity and symmetry in situ. An analytically exact description of moiré lattices under arbitrary in-plane heterostrain is developed, demonstrating fine-tuning near critical points (like the magic angle in bilayer graphene) and reconfiguration of moiré lattice symmetry. This control over electronic interactions and lattice symmetry makes 2D heterostrain a powerful platform for engineering and probing strongly correlated moiré materials.

M. Kögl, P. Soubelet, M. Brotons-Gisbert, A. V. Stier, B. D. Gerardot, J. J. Finley