Emergent moiré fringes in direct-grown quasicrystals

Jingwei Li; Kejie Bao; Honglin Sun; Xingxu Yan; Ting Huang; Qicheng Zhang; Yaoqiang Zhou; Yifeng Huang; Zhenjing Liu; Paul Masih Das; Jiawen You; Jiong Zhao; Jianbin Xu; Xiaoqing Pan; Yongli Mi; Junyi Zhu; Zhaoli Gao

doi:10.1103/r8d8-rgw7

Emergent moiré fringes in direct-grown quasicrystals

Jingwei Li^1,2,*, Kejie Bao^3,4,*, Honglin Sun¹, Xingxu Yan^5,†, Ting Huang¹, Qicheng Zhang ^6,7, Yaoqiang Zhou⁸, Yifeng Huang⁹, Zhenjing Liu ² et al.

Paul Masih Das ¹⁰, Jiawen You^1,2, Jiong Zhao¹¹, Jianbin Xu⁸, Xiaoqing Pan^5,9, Yongli Mi ², Junyi Zhu ^4,‡, and Zhaoli Gao ^1,§

¹Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
²Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
³State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics and Department of Physics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
⁴Department of Physics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
⁵Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California 92697, USA
⁶Research Center for Industries of the Future, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310030, China
⁷Key Laboratory of 3D Micro/Nano Fabrication and Characterization of Zhejiang Province, School of Engineering, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310030, China
⁸Department of Electronic Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
⁹Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California 92697, USA
¹⁰Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 19104, USA
¹¹Department of Applied Physics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China

^*These authors contributed equally to this work.
^†Contact author: xingxuy@uci.edu
^‡Contact author: jyzhu@phy.cuhk.edu.hk
^§Contact author: zlgao@cuhk.edu.hk

PDF

Phys. Rev. B 111, 235449 – Published 26 June, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/r8d8-rgw7

Abstract

Quasicrystals represent a category of rarely structured solids that challenge traditional periodicity in crystal materials. Recent advancements in the synthesis of two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals materials have paved the way for exploring the unique physical properties of these systems. Here, we report on the synthesis of 2D quasicrystals featuring $30^{\circ}$ alternating twist angles between multiple graphene layers, using chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Strikingly, we observe periodic Moiré patterns in the quasicrystal. The Moiré periodicity, varying with the parity of the total constituent layers, aligns with the theoretical predictions that suggest a stress cancellation mechanism. The emergence of Moiré fringes is attributed to the spontaneous mismatched lattice constant in the oriented graphene layers, proving the existence of atomic relaxation. This phenomenon, which has been largely understudied in graphene systems with large twist angles, has now been validated through our use of scanning transmission electron microscopy. Our CVD-grown Moiré quasicrystal provides an ideal platform for exploring the unusual physical properties that arise from Moiré periodicity within quasicrystals.

Physical Review B

Export citation

Export citation

Emergent moiré fringes in direct-grown quasicrystals

Abstract

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Authorization Required

Other Options

Supplemental Material (Subscription Required)

References (Subscription Required)

Outline

Information

Filter

Filter

Article Lookup

Enter a citation

Emergent moiré fringes in direct-grown quasicrystals

Abstract

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Authorization Required

Log in via your institution

Log in via APS Member Subscription

Other Options

Supplemental Material (Subscription Required)

References (Subscription Required)