Pressure Tuning of Layer-Hybridized Excitons in Trilayer WSe <sub>2</sub>
van der Waals (vdW) forces in two-dimensional materials allow for versatile control over interlayer coupling, enabling the exploration of novel emergent quantum states and device functionalities. Here, using microreflectance spectroscopy in a diamond anvil cell, we demonstrate dynamic pressure tuning of layer-hybridized excitons in dual-gated trilayer WSe<sub>2</sub> devices up to 6.6 GPa. Pressure-controlled interlayer coupling manifests as enhanced energy-level anticrossings and oscillator strength redistribution between the intralayer and interlayer excitons. We observe an 11% reduction in the interlayer exciton dipole moment, while the coupling strength triples (from ∼10 to >30 meV), following a near-linear scaling of 3.5 ± 0.2 meV/GPa. Spectral density simulations resolve four distinct components of hybridized excitons, i.e., intralayer ground/excited and interlayer ground/excited states, with their relative weights transitioning from one component dominant to strongly mixed at higher pressures. Our findings highlight the potential for controlling excitonic properties and engineering optoelectronic devices through interlayer compression.
Authors
- H. Yu
- J. G. Lu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4308-4665)
- Ying Xu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2401-7718)
- Shengjun Yuan
- Wenqi Xiong
- Xuan Zhao
- Yuxuan Song
- Song Liu
- Tianzhong Yang
- Xin He
- Qianying Hu
Institutions
- Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MW)
- Sun Yat-sen University (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Wuhan University (CN)
- Henan Academy of Sciences (CN)
- South China National Centre of Metrology (CN)
- FZU ‒ Institute of Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (CZ)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technology
- Wuhan Institute of Technology (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nano Letters
- Published
- 2026-01-13
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c05459
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- 2D Materials and Applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 16.08