Electronic, Optical, and Transport Properties of Quantum Dots in Proximitised Bilayer Graphene

Principal investigator

Angelika Knothe, University of Regensburg [webpage]

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Abstract

We will study the interplay between wave function confinement and proximity effects in quantum dots in heterostructures of bilayer graphene (BLG) proximitised with other 2D materials, such as transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and 2D magnets.

Gate-defined quantum dots in gapped BLG are an exciting platform for studying their confined few-particle states and as hosts for potential quantum information technologies, such as qubits. By virtue of the proximity effect, TMDs and magnetic materials will endow the confined states with additional characteristics, such as strong spin-orbit coupling and magnetic exchange fields, not present in the BLG itself. While proximity effects have been studied in extended systems, the physics of proximity coupling in confined systems in 2D materials is much less explored. Gate-defined quantum dots in proximitised BLG heterostructures represent an ideal testbed to investigate the interplay of confinement, proximity, and interaction effects.

This project will develop the first theoretical understanding of proximity effects in confined geometries by studying quantum dots in proximitised BLG. We will develop realistic microscopic models of the dots capturing BLG’s material characteristics, proximity-induced features, few-electron interactions, and the properties of the confinement.