Engineering Interlayer Exciton Dynamics in 2D Semiconductor Heterostructures

Heterostructures (HSs) formed by monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have recently emerged as promising 2D analogues to coupled quantum wells formed by 3D semiconductors, with interest arising from a number of novel physical properties. These include valley contrasting physics inherited from the HS's monolayer constituents; the interlayer excitons that form therein, which exhibit lifetimes orders of magnitude longer than the intralayer species due to reduced electron-hole exchange interactions; and the strong many-body interactions which dominate interlayer exciton dynamics. By separating the TMD layers with a thin dielectric spacer, we reduce the electron-hole wavefunction overlap of the interlayer exciton and tune their repulsive dipole-dipole many-body interactions, thus modifying the interlayer exciton dynamics.