Feshbach resonances play a vital role in the success of cold atoms investigating strongly-correlated physics. The recent observation of their solid-state analog in the scattering of holes and intralayer excitons in transition metal dichalcogenides [Schwartz et al., Science 374, 336 (2021)] holds compelling promise for bringing fully controllable interactions to the field of semiconductors. Here, we demonstrate how tunneling-induced layer hybridization can lead to the emergence of two distinct classes of Feshbach resonances in atomically thin semiconductors. Based on microscopic scattering theory we show that these two types of Feshbach resonances allow to tune interactions between electrons and both short-lived intralayer, as well as long-lived interlayer excitons. We predict the exciton-electron scattering phase shift from first principles and show that the exciton-electron coupling is fully tunable from strong to vanishing interactions. The tunability of interactions opens the avenue to explore Bose-Fermi mixtures in solid-state systems in regimes that were previously only accessible in cold atom experiments.
Feshbach resonances play a vital role in the success of cold atoms investigating strongly-correlated physics. The recent observation of their solid-state analog in the scattering of holes and intralayer excitons in transition metal dichalcogenides [Schwartz et al., Science 374, 336 (2021)] holds compelling promise for bringing fully controllable interactions to the field of semiconductors. Here, we demonstrate how tunneling-induced layer hybridization can lead to the emergence of two distinct classes of Feshbach resonances in atomically thin semiconductors. Based on microscopic scattering theory we show that these two types of Feshbach resonances allow to tune interactions between electrons and both short-lived intralayer, as well as long-lived interlayer excitons. We predict the exciton-electron scattering phase shift from first principles and show that the exciton-electron coupling is fully tunable from strong to vanishing interactions. The tunability of interactions opens the avenue to explore Bose-Fermi mixtures in solid-state systems in regimes that were previously only accessible in cold atom experiments.
Direct evidence of exciton condensation in semiconductor heterostructures remains elusive. Here we propose charge transport of doped carriers as a probe of exciton condensation in transition-metal dichalcogenide heterostructures and identify distinct experimental signatures. First, condensation suppresses the phase space for carrier scattering, leading to a reduction in resistivity, that provides a general diagnostic of exciton condensation. Second, in heterostructures with a tunable solid-state Feshbach resonance, condensate-induced hybridization between doped carriers and trion bound states qualitatively modifies transport. In particular, near resonance, this hybridization yields a negative effective mass and a corresponding sign reversal of the Hall resistivity. These results establish charge transport as a promising route for detecting and characterizing exciton condensation in semiconductor heterostructures.
Resonant interactions associated with the emergence of a bound state constitute one of the cornerstones of modern many-body physics, ranging from Kondo physics, BEC-BCS crossover, to tunable interactions at Feshbach resonances in ultracold atoms or 2D semiconductors. Here we present a Feshbach perspective on the origin of strong pairing in Fermi-Hubbard type models. We perform a theoretical analysis of interactions between charge carriers in doped Mott insulators, modeled by a near-resonant two-channel scattering problem, and find strong evidence for Feshbach-type interactions in the dx2−y2 channel that can support strong pairing, consistent with the established phenomenology of cuprates. Existing experimental and numerical results on hole-doped cuprates lead us to conjecture the existence of a light, long-lived, low-energy excited state of two holes with bipolaron character in these systems, which enables near-resonant interactions and can thus provide a microscopic foundation for theories of high-temperature superconductivity involving strong attraction, as assumed e.g. in BEC-BCS crossover scenarios. To put our theory to a direct test we suggest to use coincidence angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (cARPES), pair-tunneling measurements or less direct pump-probe experiments. The emergent Feshbach resonance we propose could also underlie superconductivity in other doped antiferromagnetic Mott insulators, as recently proposed for bilayer nickelates, highlighting its potential as a unifying strong-coupling pairing mechanism rooted in quantum magnetism.
Inspired by the progress on the study of exciton physics in atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) semiconductors, we investigate the formation of analogs of excitons in cold atomic systems. To this end, we consider single-component fermions comprised of ultracold ground-state molecules or dipolar atoms in a hexagonal optical lattice. An energy offset between triangular sublattices opens up a band gap with degeneracies at the K/K' points as in TMDs. We predict the existence of cold atomic excitons and show that cold atoms allow us to study excitons from the weak-coupling regime, where effective mass models apply, to the strong-interaction regime, described by flat-band models. We demonstrate how these excitons can be observed using lattice modulation spectroscopy, and how their wave functions can be mapped out using quantum gas microscopy. Firmly establishing the idea of quantum simulation of semiconductor physics, this work lays the foundation for simulating complex electronic states such as trions, polarons and excitonic insulators.
The research described in this thesis is part of an international effort with the aim of studying ultracold quantum degenerate gas samples like Bose-Einstein condensates and Fermi degenerate systems, consisting of atoms confined in magnetic or optical traps. The behavior of such samples is governed by the inter-atomic interactions and the resulting properties of the atom-atom scattering. At the relevant temperatures of 1nK to 10µK a key property is the atom-atom scattering length a. In chapter 2 a theoretical method is presented which enables one to describe the interaction and scattering of (ultra)cold atoms to unprecedented precision. It is also unparalleled in comprehensiveness: it allows the prediction of a large and varied set of experimental data for all isotopes of the same element. The method relies on the extraction from experiments of a few (phase) parameters which completely summarize the behavior of the atoms in the (ultra)cold regime. In chapter 3 the method is applied to the "workhorses" of cold-atom physics: the atomic species 85Rb and 87Rb. We extract the foregoing parameters to a very high precision from several recent high precision experiments, allowing us to predict e.g. the 87Rb spinor condensate to be ferromagnetic: a prediction for which the scattering length has to be calculated with a precision better than 1%. We also predict Feshbach resonances at experimentally accessible magnetic field strengths; resonances searched for and found by the experimental group of Rempe. In close collaboration with his group we "fine-tune" the interaction parameters found previously, by making use of only one of the observed resonances. We then obtain agreement with 42 out of the observed 43 resonance field strengths and are able to identify bound states inducing the Feshbach resonances at these locations. Chapter 4 describes the results of this research. With a thorough understanding of the rubidium interactions, we then switch to lithium which has a fermionic (6Li) and a bosonic (7Li) isotope. Both are being used in cold-atom experiments. In chapter 5 we evaluate the interaction parameters for lithium allowing us to predict magnetic field strengths for which a sample of fermionic 6Li atoms can be regarded as strongly interacting. Furthermore, a three-level method for measuring mean-field shifts, based on radio-frequency techniques, is introduced. For weak interactions we find proportionality of resonance shifts to interaction strengths. In the strongly interacting regime, however, these shifts become very small reflecting the quantum unitarity limit and many-body effects. Most interesting is the fact that in this regime the shifts are small both for large positive a and for large negative a, likely reflecting the universality of the interaction energy. In chapters 6 and 7 the interactions between lithium atoms are reinvestigated, making use of newly available experimental data and with the updated interaction parameters special attention is paid to locating field strengths at which magnetically tunable Feshbach resonances occur in the scattering of lithium atoms. In chapter 6 scattering events in a gas of (fermionic) 6Li atoms are studied. In chapter 7 we show that a consistent description of the 6Li+6Li system can be given. We discuss theoretical uncertainties for the position of the wide 6Li Feshbach resonance and present an analytic scattering model for this resonance, based on the inclusion of a field-dependent virtual open-channel state. We predict new Feshbach resonances for the 6Li-7Li system, and their importance for different types of crossover superfluidity models is discussed. Molecules created by magnetically sweeping over these resonances will have a fermionic character. One magnetic field strength is predicted at which two different fermionic molecules can be created simultaneously.
Modeling the underlying pairing mechanism of charge carriers in strongly correlated electrons, starting from a microscopic theory, is among the central challenges of condensed-matter physics. Hereby, the key task is to understand what causes the appearance of superconductivity at comparatively high temperatures upon hole doping an antiferromagnetic (AFM) Mott insulator. Recently, it has been proposed that at strong coupling and low doping, the fundamental one- and two-hole meson-type constituents---magnetic polarons and bipolaronic pairs---likely realize an emergent Feshbach resonance producing near-resonant ${d}_{{x}^{2}\ensuremath{-}{y}^{2}}$ interactions between charge carriers. Here, we provide detailed calculations of the proposed scenario by describing the open and closed meson scattering channels in the $t\text{\ensuremath{-}}{t}^{\ensuremath{'}}\text{\ensuremath{-}}J$ model using a truncated basis method. After integrating out the closed channel constituted by bipolaronic pairs, we find ${d}_{{x}^{2}\ensuremath{-}{y}^{2}}$ attractive interactions between open channel magnetic polarons. The closed form of the derived interactions allows us analyze the resonant pairing interactions and we find enhanced (suppressed) attraction for hole (electron) doping in our model. The formalism we introduce provides a framework to analyze the implications of a possible Feshbach scenario, e.g., in the context of BEC-BCS crossover, and establishes a foundation to test quantitative aspects of the proposed Feshbach pairing mechanisms in doped antiferromagnets.
Abstract Resonant interactions associated with the emergence of a bound state constitute one of the cornerstones of modern many-body physics. Here we present a Feshbach perspective on the origin of strong pairing in Fermi-Hubbard type models. We perform a theoretical analysis of interactions between spin-polaron charge carriers in doped Mott insulators, modeled by a near-resonant two-channel scattering problem, and report evidence for Feshbach-type interactions in the dx2−y2 d x 2 − y 2 channel, consistent with the established phenomenology of cuprates. Existing experimental and numerical results on hole-doped cuprates lead us to conjecture the existence of a light, long-lived, low-energy excited state of two holes, which enables near-resonant interactions. To put our theory to a test we suggest to use coincidence angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (cARPES), pair-tunneling measurements or pump-probe experiments. The emergent Feshbach resonance among spin-polarons could also underlie superconductivity in other doped antiferromagnetic Mott insulators highlighting its potential as a unifying strong-coupling pairing mechanism rooted in quantum magnetism.