Electronic phonon–induced magnetism in moiré Mott-Wigner crystals
Phys. Rev. B 114, 045412 – Published 10 July, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/w6qd-yq17
Abstract
We show that magnetism in moiré Mott-Wigner crystals can be induced by the collective vibration of electrons around their equilibrium positions (namely, electronic phonons), even without the electron-electron spin interaction. Due to a geometric valley-orbit coupling from the Berry phase effect, the zero-point energy of electronic phonons reaches minimum when electrons are fully valley polarized. This leads to a spontaneous magnetization when below a critical temperature. We further propose engineering magnetism in Mott-Wigner crystals through the photoexcitation of chiral electronic phonons.
