Does Moire Matter? Critical Moire Dependence with Quantum Fluctuations in Graphene Based Integer and Fractional Chern Insulators

ORAL

Abstract

Rhombohedral multilayer graphene has emerged as a powerful platform for investigating flat-band-driven correlated phenomena, yet most aspects remain not understood. In this work, we systematically study the moire-dependent band topology in rhombohedral hexalayer graphene. For the first time we demonstrate that the moire twist angle plays a crucial role in the formation of the moire Chern insulators in rhombohedral hexalayer graphene/hexagonal boron nitride (RHG/hBN) moire superlattices. In the moire-distant regime at filling factor v = 1, only systems with a twist angle \theta < 1.1° exhibit an integer moire Chern insulator, while the fractional Chern insulator at v = 2/3 requires smaller twist angle to be stabilized. Our theoretical modelling, which includes quantum fluctuations and exact diagonalization results, suggests that mean-field theory, which has been widely adopted, does not explain the twist-angle dependence of the v = 1 phase diagram, and that correlation effects are crucial. Moreover, we realize two distinct stacking configurations between graphene and hBN, and find that both cases can yield a Chern insulator at v = 1. Our combined experimental and theoretical work upends the current mean-field paradigm, illuminates how quantum fluctuations and moiré effects shape the RHG/hBN phase diagram, and paves the way for future understanding and engineering of topological correlated states in rhombohedral graphene moire systems.

Presenters

  • Yves Kwan

    • University of Texas at Dallas
    • Princeton University

Authors

  • Zihao Huo

    • Peking University
  • Wenxuan Wang

    • Peking University
  • Jian Xie

    • Peking University
  • Yves Kwan

    • University of Texas at Dallas
    • Princeton University
  • Jonah Herzog-Arbeitman

    • Princeton University
    • Department of Physics, Princeton University
  • Zaizhe Zhang

    • Peking University
  • Qiu Yang

    • Peking University
  • Qiu Yang

    • Peking University
  • Kenji Watanabe

    • National Institute for Materials Science
    • Research Center for Functional Materials, National Institute of Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
  • Takashi Taniguchi

    • National Institute for Materials Science
    • Research Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science
    • International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute of Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
    • Research Center for Functional Materials, National Institute of Materials Science, 1-1 Namiki Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan
  • Kaihui Liu

    • Peking University
  • Nicolas Regnault

    • Flatiron Institute
    • Center for Computational Quantum Physics, Flatiron Institute
  • Andrei B Bernevig

    • Princeton University
    • Department of Physics, Princeton University
  • Xiaobo Lu

    • Peking University