Electronic Correlations in Rhombohedral Graphene at Atomic Scale
Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 156401 – Published 6 October, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/fv52-pd3h
Abstract
Rhombohedral graphene (RG) has emerged as a promising platform for exploring exotic quantum phenomena, such as quantum magnetism, unconventional superconductivity, and fractional quantum anomalous Hall effects. Despite its potential, atomic-scale investigations of RG remain limited, hindering a detailed microscopic understanding of the origins of these correlated states. In this Letter, we employ scanning probe microscopy and spectroscopy to probe the intrinsic electronic states in trilayer and tetralayer RG. We identify a correlated insulating state with a gap up to 19 meV at the charge neutrality point in tetralayer RG, which is absent in the trilayer RG and Bernal stacking tetralayer. This gap is suppressed by applying a perpendicular magnetic field or doping the charge carrier density and does not exhibit intervalley coherence patterns. We attribute this phenomenon to a symmetry-broken layer antiferromagnetic state, characterized by ferrimagnetic ordering in the outermost layers and antiferromagnetic coupling between them. To further investigate this magnetic correlated state, we conduct local scattering experiments. Within the correlated regime, a threefold symmetric pattern emerges around a possible nonmagnetic impurity, suggesting that nonmagnetic doping may induce a spin texture in the ferrimagnetic surface layers. Outside the correlated regime, Friedel oscillations are observed, allowing precise determination of the band dispersion in tetralayer RG. These findings provide atomic-scale evidences of zero-field correlations in RG and may be extended to study other exotic phases in RG.
