Control of light-valley interactions in 2D transition metal dichalcogenides with nanophotonic structures

Electronic valley in two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides (2D TMDCs) offers a new degree of freedom for information storage and processing. The valley pseudospin can be optically encoded by photons with specific helicity, enabling the construction of electronic information devices with both high performance and low power consumption. Robust detection, manipulation and transport of the valley pseudospins at room temperature are still challenging because of the short lifetime of valley-polarized carriers and excitons. Integrating 2D TMDCs with nanophotonic objects such as plasmonic nanostructures provides a competitive solution to address the challenge. The research in this field is of practical interest and can also present rich physics of light-matter interactions. In this minireview, recent progress on using nanophotonic strategies to enhance the valley polarization degree, especially at room temperature, is highlighted. Open questions, major challenges, and interesting future developments in manipulating the valley information in 2D semiconductors with the help of nanophotonic structures will also be discussed.

Automated summary

The electronic valley in 2D transition-metal dichalcogenides provides a new degree of freedom for information storage and processing, but robust detection, manipulation, and transport of valley pseudospins at room temperature remain challenging. Integrating these materials with nanophotonic objects offers a competitive solution and presents rich physics of light-matter interactions. Recent progress in enhancing valley polarization degree using nanophotonic strategies, especially at room temperature, is highlighted, along with discussions on open questions, major challenges, and interesting future developments in manipulating valley information in 2D semiconductors.