Electron crystals come under the microscope - Nature.com

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• 29 September 2021

Electron crystals come under the microscope

In 2D materials, electrons at low densities can freeze into well-defined positions and form exotic structures called Wigner crystals. A non-invasive technique has been developed to image these crystals directly.

• Carmen Rubio-Verdú ⁰

1. Carmen Rubio-Verdú

   1. Carmen Rubio-Verdú is in the Department of Physics, Columbia University, New York 10027, USA.

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In 1934, the physicist Eugene Wigner predicted that electrons could form crystals¹. Evidence of such Wigner crystals has been seen in liquid helium-4^2,3, in 2D electron gases under strong magnetic fields^4,5 and in 2D semiconductors^6–8. However, these crystals have been difficult to observe directly because they are fragile and can be altered by any small perturbation. Writing in Nature, Li et al.⁹ report the direct imaging of Wigner crystals in a 2D material.

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Nature 597, 640-641 (2021)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-02573-9

References

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   Wigner, E. Phys. Rev. 46, 1002–1011 (1934).

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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