Dielectric catastrophe at the Wigner-Mott transition in a moiré superlattice

Yanhao Tang (), Jie Gu, Song Liu, Kenji Watanabe, Takashi Taniguchi, James C. Hone, Kin Fai Mak () and Jie Shan ()
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Yanhao Tang: Cornell University
Jie Gu: Cornell University
Song Liu: Columbia University
Kenji Watanabe: National Institute for Materials Science
Takashi Taniguchi: National Institute for Materials Science
James C. Hone: Columbia University
Kin Fai Mak: Cornell University
Jie Shan: Cornell University

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract The bandwidth-tuned Wigner-Mott transition is an interaction-driven phase transition from a generalized Wigner crystal to a Fermi liquid. Because the transition is generally accompanied by both magnetic and charge-order instabilities, it remains unclear if a continuous Wigner-Mott transition exists. Here, we demonstrate bandwidth-tuned metal-insulator transitions at fixed fractional fillings of a MoSe2/WS2 moiré superlattice. The bandwidth is controlled by an out-of-plane electric field. The dielectric response is probed optically with the 2s exciton in a remote WSe2 sensor layer. The exciton spectral weight is negligible for the metallic state with a large negative dielectric constant. It continuously vanishes when the transition is approached from the insulating side, corresponding to a diverging dielectric constant or a ‘dielectric catastrophe’ driven by the critical charge dynamics near the transition. Our results support the scenario of continuous Wigner-Mott transitions in two-dimensional triangular lattices and stimulate future explorations of exotic quantum phases in their vicinities.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32037-1

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