Bilayer Wigner Crystals on an Atomically Thin Canvas*

One of the first theoretically predicted manifestations of strong interactions in many-electron systems was the Wigner crystal, in which electrons crystallize into a regular lattice. Quantum melting of the Wigner crystal is predicted to produce exotic intermediate phases and quantum magnetism because of the intricate interplay of Coulomb interactions and kinetic energy. However, studying two-dimensional Wigner crystals in the quantum regime has often required a strong magnetic field or a moiré superlattice potential, thus limiting access to the full phase diagram of the interacting electron liquid. In my talk, I will discuss our recent observation of bilayer Wigner crystals without magnetic fields or moiré potentials in an atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructure, which consists of two MoSe₂ monolayers separated by hexagonal boron nitride. We observe optical signatures of robust correlated insulating states at symmetric (1:1) and asymmetric (3:1, 4:1, and 7:1) electron doping of the two MoSe₂ layers at cryogenic temperatures. We attribute these features to bilayer Wigner crystals composed of two interlocked commensurate triangular electron lattices, stabilized by inter-layer interaction. The Wigner crystal phases are remarkably stable and undergo quantum and thermal melting transitions at electron densities of up to 6 × 10¹² per square centimeter and temperatures of up to about 40 Kelvin. I will end the talk by discussing ongoing experimental studies of the spin orders near the quantum phase transition points in mono- and bilayer Wigner crystals.