Programmable electric hysteresis in graphite/MoS2 heterojunctions through twisting
Van der Waals devices have recently been shown to enable remarkable field-effect control over electronic orders, including sliding ferroelectricity. In this work, we report robust electric hysteresis in graphite/MoS2 heterojunction devices. The hysteretic behavior is programmable via interlayer twisting, with the memory window sharply decreasing near 30°, confirming strong angle-dependent modulation. Owing to the superlubric nature of the interface, such manipulation can be performed rapidly and with minimal energy cost. The underlying mechanism is further supported by the observation of a finite out-of-plane piezoelectric response in the graphite/MoS2 heterojunction, with an effective piezoelectric coefficient of d33 = 3.8 pm/V. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the electric response originates from a combination of interfacial charge transfer and moiré potential effects, without requiring interlayer sliding to explain the observed hysteresis. This work shows that adjusting the twist-angle in heterojunctions can control ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties, enabling better nanoelectronic devices. Authors find that graphite/MoS2 van der Waals heterojunctions exhibit twist-angle dependent electrical hysteresis, with the memory window sharply decreasing near 30°. Their superlubric interface enables rapid, energy-efficient twisting and memory tuning.
Authors
- X Y Lu
- Ming Ma
- Wei Cao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5227-7632)
- Ni Zhong (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6875-4007)
- Juntai Wu
- Yuqing He
- Zhaokuan Yu
Institutions
- Nanjing Tech University (CN)
- University Town of Shenzhen (CN)
- Tsinghua–Berkeley Shenzhen Institute (CN)
- East China Normal University (CN)
- Zhejiang University (CN)
- Tsinghua University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2026-05-29
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-73318-3
- Primary Topic
- 2D Materials and Applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- State Key Laboratory of Materials- Oriented Chemical Engineering