Unravelling Fragile 1D Quantum States of Matter Through Ultra-sensitive Imaging

Project Information

See-1D-Qmatter

Grant agreement ID: 647413

DOI

10.3030/647413

Project closed

EC signature date 16 June 2015

Start date 1 January 2016

End date 30 June 2022

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)

Total cost

€ 2 475 000,00

EU contribution

€ 2 475 000,00

Coordinated by

WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE
Israel

Periodic Reporting for period 5 - See-1D-Qmatter (Unravelling Fragile 1D Quantum States of Matter Through Ultra-sensitive Imaging)

Reporting period: 2022-01-01 to 2022-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

In this ERC grant we developed a novel scanning probe platform capable of imaging quantum states of matter that evaded discovery for many years due to their fragility. Our platform utilizes a pristine carbon nanotube as a scanning charge probe for imaging, with minimal invasiveness, the many-body electronic density within another nanotube. This tool has allowed us to make a series of groundbreaking discoveries on quantum phases of electrons, strongly impacting our basic science understanding and heaving future potential technological impact. Some of our experiments observed for the first time effects that were predicted theoretically decades ago, but could not be observed experimentally even with state of the art tools. These include the discovery of the quantum crystal of electrons, the observation of electronic attraction by repulsion, and the visualization of liquid (Poiseuille) flow of hydrodynamic electrons. Other experiments have led to surprising discoveries such as new phases of matter in magic angle twisted bilayer graphene, or the observation of the dramatic breakdown of the ballistic Landauer-Sharvin limit in hydrodynamic electronic flow. Finally, this platform also enabled technological breakthroughs in the fields of real-space imaging, nanotube nano-mechanics, and electronic quantum bits. Overall, the new experimental platform that we developed here turned out to be much more fruitful scientifically than our most optimistic expectations in our proposal.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

1. Development of an ultra-low (milli-Kelvin) custom scanning probe microscope.
2. Development of very long pristine quantum devices from carbon nanotubes.
3. Development of novel scanning probe technique and modalities based on a scanning nanotube probe.
4. Development of time domain (high frequency) pump probe techniques for fast measurements.
5. First observation of electronic attraction by Coulomb repulsion (published in Nature 2016).
6. First observation of the quantum Wigner crystal of electrons (Published in Science 2019).
7. Development of a scanning probe technique to image voltage of flowing electrons (Published in Nature Nanotechnology 2019).
8. Measurements of insulating electronic states via nanomechanical motion of nanotubes (Nature Nanotechnology 2019).
9. Development of a new type of charge qubit in carbon nanotube and using it as an extremely sensitive nano-sensor of electric and magnetic fields (Published in Nature Communications 2020).
10. Visualizing the hydrodynamic flow of electrons (published in Nature 2019)
11. Discovery of symmetry broken phases in magic angle twisted bilayer graphene (published in Nature 2020)
12. Discovery of the Pomeranchuk effect in magic angle twisted bilayer graphene (published in Nature 2021)
13. Discovery of hydrodynamic electron flow without the fundamental Landauer-Sharvin resistance (published in Nature 2022)

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

As can be seen from the high impact journals of the publication, each of the above works was a major breakthrough. From the technical point of view, we have built a unique imaging platform, which so far has no counterpart anywhere in the world. We also developed methodologies to visualize basic physical quantities that goes much beyond the state of the art. Owing to these technical breakthroughs we were able to make in this project also a series of scientific breakthroughs.

Nanotube scanning probe imaging the quantum crystal in another nanotube