Spectroscopy of Wigner crystal polarons in an atomically thin semiconductor

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Wang, L., Menzel, F., Pichler, F., Knüppel, P., Watanabe, K., Taniguchi, T., Knap, M., Smoleński, T.
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2025
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author Wang, L.
Menzel, F.
Pichler, F.
Knüppel, P.
Watanabe, K.
Taniguchi, T.
Knap, M.
Smoleński, T.
author_facet Wang, L.
Menzel, F.
Pichler, F.
Knüppel, P.
Watanabe, K.
Taniguchi, T.
Knap, M.
Smoleński, T.
contents Strongly interacting electrons in two-dimensional systems can spontaneously break translational symmetry, forming a periodic Wigner crystal. Although these crystals have been realized in several platforms, experimental studies of their collective many-body excitations in the absence of a magnetic field remain an outstanding challenge. Here, we access this regime optically by uncovering Wigner crystal polarons: novel light-matter excitations arising from the dressing of excitons by collective excitations of the Wigner crystal. These hybrid quasiparticles manifest as new optical resonances in cryogenic reflectance spectra of a charge-tunable WSe$_2$ monolayer, appearing concurrently with previously identified exciton umklapp transitions. In contrast to the latter, the energies of Wigner crystal polarons are governed not only by the electronic lattice constant but also by their hybridization with attractive exciton-polarons, whose strength is controlled by electronic interactions. These novel many-body excitations provide an optical interface to the spin state of the Wigner crystal, which as we demonstrate, can be controlled both magnetically and optically. Our work establishes layered materials as a unique platform for exploring dynamical impurity dressing by strongly correlated electronic orders.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2512_16552
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Spectroscopy of Wigner crystal polarons in an atomically thin semiconductor
Wang, L.
Menzel, F.
Pichler, F.
Knüppel, P.
Watanabe, K.
Taniguchi, T.
Knap, M.
Smoleński, T.
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Strongly Correlated Electrons
Strongly interacting electrons in two-dimensional systems can spontaneously break translational symmetry, forming a periodic Wigner crystal. Although these crystals have been realized in several platforms, experimental studies of their collective many-body excitations in the absence of a magnetic field remain an outstanding challenge. Here, we access this regime optically by uncovering Wigner crystal polarons: novel light-matter excitations arising from the dressing of excitons by collective excitations of the Wigner crystal. These hybrid quasiparticles manifest as new optical resonances in cryogenic reflectance spectra of a charge-tunable WSe$_2$ monolayer, appearing concurrently with previously identified exciton umklapp transitions. In contrast to the latter, the energies of Wigner crystal polarons are governed not only by the electronic lattice constant but also by their hybridization with attractive exciton-polarons, whose strength is controlled by electronic interactions. These novel many-body excitations provide an optical interface to the spin state of the Wigner crystal, which as we demonstrate, can be controlled both magnetically and optically. Our work establishes layered materials as a unique platform for exploring dynamical impurity dressing by strongly correlated electronic orders.
title Spectroscopy of Wigner crystal polarons in an atomically thin semiconductor
topic Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Strongly Correlated Electrons
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.16552