Giant magnetic field from moiré induced Berry phase in homobilayer semiconductors

Abstract

When quasiparticles move in condensed matters, the texture of their internal quantum structure as a function of position and momentum can give rise to Berry phases that have profound effects on the material’s properties. Seminal examples include the anomalous Hall and spin Hall effects from the momentum-space Berry phases in homogeneous crystals. Here, we explore a conjugate form of the electron Berry phase arising from the moiré pattern: the texture of atomic configurations in real space. In homobilayer transition metal dichalcogenides, we show that the real-space Berry phase from moiré patterns manifests as a periodic magnetic field with magnitudes of up to hundreds of Tesla. This quantity distinguishes moiré patterns from different origins, which can have an identical potential landscape, but opposite quantized magnetic flux per supercell. For low-energy carriers, the homobilayer moirés realize topological flux lattices for the quantum-spin Hall effect. An interlayer bias can continuously tune the spatial profile of the moiré magnetic field, whereas the flux per supercell is a topological quantity that can only have a quantized jump observable at a moderate bias. We also reveal the important role of the non-Abelian Berry phase in shaping the energy landscape in small moiré patterns. Our work points to new possibilities to access ultra-high magnetic fields that can be tailored to the nanoscale by electrical and mechanical controls.