L. Bouet

Robust optical emission polarization in MoS2 monolayers through selective valley excitation

We report polarization resolved photoluminescence from monolayer MoS2, a two-dimensional, noncentrosymmetric crystal with direct energy gaps at two different valleys in momentum space. The inherent chiral optical selectivity allows exciting one of these valleys, and close to 90% polarized emission at 4 K is observed with 40% polarization remaining at 300 K. The high polarization degree of the emission remains unchanged in transverse magnetic fields up to 9 T indicating robust, selective valley excitation.

Giant enhancement of the optical second-harmonic emission of WSe(2) monolayers by laser excitation at exciton resonances.

Monolayers (MLs) of MoS2 and WSe2 are 2D semiconductors with strong, direct optical transitions that are governed by tightly Coulomb bound eletron-hole pairs (excitons). The optoelectronic properties of these transition metal dichalcogenides are directly related to the inherent crystal inversion symmetry breaking. It allows for efficient second harmonic generation (SHG) and is at the origin of chiral optical selections rules, which enable efficient optical initialization of electrons in specific K-valleys in momentum space. Here we demonstrate how these unique non-linear and linear optical properties can be combined to efficiently prepare exciton valley coherence and polarization through resonant pumping of an excited exciton state. In particular a new approach to coherent alignment of excitons following two-photon excitation is demonstrated. We observe a clear deviation of the excited exciton spectrum from the standard Rydberg series via resonances in SHG spectroscopy and two- and one-photon absorption. The clear identification of the 2s and 2p exciton excited states combined with first principle calculations including strong anti-screening effects allows us to determine an exciton binding energy of the order of 600 meV in ML WSe2.

Valley dynamics probed through charged and neutral exciton emission in monolayer WSe 2

Optical interband transitions in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides such as WSe2 and MoS2 are governed by chiral selection rules. This allows efficient optical initialization of an electron in a specific K valley in momentum space. Here we probe the valley dynamics in monolayer WSe2 by monitoring the emission and polarization dynamics of the well-separated neutral excitons (bound electron-hole pairs) and charged excitons (trions) in photoluminescence. The neutral exciton photoluminescence intensity decay time is about 4 ps, whereas the trion emission occurs over several tens of ps. The trion polarization dynamics shows a partial, fast initial decay within tens of ps before reaching a stable polarization of ≈20%, for which a typical valley polarization decay time of the order of 1 ns can be inferred.

Exciton fine structure and spin decoherence in monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides

We study the neutral exciton energy spectrum fine structure and its spin dephasing in transition metal dichalcogenides such as MoS

Exciton states in monolayer MoSe2: impact on interband transitions

_2

Nuclear magnetization in gallium arsenide quantum dots at zero magnetic field.

. The interaction of the mechanical exciton with its macroscopic longitudinal electric field is taken into account. The splitting between the longitudinal and transverse excitons is calculated by means of the both electrodynamical approach and

Magnetic field induced valence band mixing in [111] grown semiconductor quantum dots

\mathbf k \cdot \mathbf p

Exciton dynamics in WSe2 bilayers

perturbation theory. This long-range exciton exchange interaction can induce valley polarization decay. The estimated exciton spin dephasing time is in the picosecond range, in agreement with available experimental data.

Charge tuning in [111] grown GaAs droplet quantum dots

© 2015 IOP Publishing Ltd. We combine linear and nonlinear optical spectroscopy at 4 K with ab initio calculations to study the electronic bandstructure of MoSe 2 monolayers. In one-photon photoluminescence excitation (PLE) and reflectivity we measure a separation between the A- and B-exciton emission of 220 meV, in good agreement with our calculations. In two-photon PLE we detect for the A- and B-exciton the 2p state 180 meV above the respective 1s state. In second harmonic generation (SHG) spectroscopy we record an enhancement by more than two orders of magnitude of the SHG signal at resonances of the charged exciton and the 1s and 2p neutral A- and B-exciton. Our post-density functional theory calculations show in the conduction band along the K-Γ direction a local minimum at the Λ-point that is energetically and in k-space close to the global minimum at the K-point. The influence of this local minimum on exciton transitions is discussed.

Voltage control of electron-nuclear spin correlation time in a single quantum dot

Optical and electrical control of the nuclear spin system allows enhancing the sensitivity of NMR applications and spin-based information storage and processing. Dynamic nuclear polarization in semiconductors is commonly achieved in the presence of a stabilizing external magnetic field. Here we report efficient optical pumping of nuclear spins at zero magnetic field in strain-free GaAs quantum dots. The strong interaction of a single, optically injected electron spin with the nuclear spins acts as a stabilizing, effective magnetic field (Knight field) on the nuclei. We optically tune the Knight field amplitude and direction. In combination with a small transverse magnetic field, we are able to control the longitudinal and transverse components of the nuclear spin polarization in the absence of lattice strain—that is, in dots with strongly reduced static nuclear quadrupole effects, as reproduced by our model calculations.