Multiflat Bands and Strong Correlations in Twisted Bilayer Boron Nitride: Doping-Induced Correlated Insulator and Superconductor

• Published in: Nano letters Vol. 19; no. 8; pp. 4934 - 4940
• Main Authors: Xian, Lede, Kennes, Dante M, Tancogne-Dejean, Nicolas, Altarelli, Massimo, Rubio, Angel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 14-08-2019
• Subjects: Letter; multiflat bands; ab initio calculation; strong correlations; Mott insulator; Twisted bilayer; topological superconductor
• ISSN: 1530-6984; 1530-6992
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.9b00986

Two-dimensional materials, obtained by van der Waals stacking of layers, are fascinating objects of contemporary condensed matter research, exhibiting a variety of new physics. Inspired by the breakthroughs of twisted bilayer graphene (TBG), we demonstrate that twisted bilayer boron nitride (TBBN) is an even more exciting novel system that turns out to be an excellent platform to realize new correlated phases and phenomena; exploration of its electronic properties shows that in contrast to TBG in TBBN multiple families of 2,4, and 6-fold degenerate flat bands emerge without the need to fine tune close to a “magic angle”, resulting in dramatic and tunable changes in optical properties and exciton physics, and providing an additional platform to study strong correlations. Upon doping, unforeseen new correlated phases of matter (insulating and superconducting) emerge. TBBN could thus provide a promising experimental platform, insensitive to small deviations in the twist angle, to study novel exciton condensate and spatial confinement physics, and correlations in two dimensions.