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Black phosphorus (BP) offers considerable promise for infrared and visible photonics. Efficient tuning of the bandgap and higher subbands in BP by modulation of the Fermi level or application of vertical electric fields has been previously demonstrated, allowing electrical control of its above bandgap optical properties. Here, we report modulation of the optical conductivity below the band-gap (5-15 um) by tuning the charge density in a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) induced in BP, thereby modifying its free carrier dominated intraband response. With a moderate doping density of 7x10^12/cm2 we were able to observe a polarization dependent epsilon-near-zero behavior in the dielectric permittivity of BP. The intraband polarization sensitivity is intimately linked to the difference in effective fermionic masses along the two crystallographic directions, as confirmed by our measurements. Our results suggest the potential of multilayer BP to allow new optical functions for emerging photonics applications., Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures

The incorporation of electrically tunable materials into photonic structures such as waveguides and metasurfaces enables dynamic control of light propagation by an applied potential. While many materials have been shown to exhibit electrically tunable permittivity and dispersion, including transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) and III-V semiconductors and quantum wells, these materials are all optically isotropic in the propagation plane. In this work, we report the first known example of electrically tunable linear dichroism, observed here in few-layer black phosphorus (BP), which is a promising candidate for multi-functional, broadband, tunable photonic elements. We measure active modulation of the linear dichroism from the mid-infrared to visible frequency range, which is driven by anisotropic quantum-confined Stark and Burstein-Moss effects, and field-induced forbidden-to-allowed optical transitions. Moreover, we observe high BP absorption modulation strengths, approaching unity for certain thicknesses and photon energies.

We report measurements of the infrared optical response of thin black phosphorus under field-effect modulation. We interpret the observed spectral changes as a combination of an ambipolar Burstein-Moss (BM) shift of the absorption edge due to band-filling under gate control, and a quantum confined Franz-Keldysh (QCFK) effect, phenomena which have been proposed theoretically to occur for black phosphorus under an applied electric field. Distinct optical responses are observed depending on the flake thickness and starting carrier concentration. Transmission extinction modulation amplitudes of more than two percent are observed, suggesting the potential for use of black phosphorus as an active material in mid-infrared optoelectronic modulator applications.

We report mid-infrared spectroscopy measurements of an electrostatically gated topological insulator, in which we observe several percent modulation of transmittance and reflectance of (Bi1-xSbx)2Te3 films as gating shifts the Fermi level. Infrared transmittance measurements of gated (Bi1-xSbx)2Te3 films were enabled by use of an epitaxial lift-off method for large-area transfer of topological insulator films from infrared-absorbing SrTiO3 growth substrates to thermal oxidized silicon substrates. We combine these optical experiments with transport measurements and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to identify the observed spectral modulation as a gate-driven transfer of spectral weight between both bulk and topological surface channels and interband and intraband channels. We develop a model for the complex permittivity of gated (Bi1-xSbx)2Te3, and find a good match to our experimental data. These results open the path for layered topological insulator materials as a new candidate for tunable infrared optics and highlight the possibility of switching topological optoelectronic phenomena between bulk and spin-polarized surface regimes.

The properties of polycrystalline materials are often dominated by the size of their grains and by the atomic structure of their grain boundaries. These effects should be especially pronounced in 2D materials, where even a line defect can divide and disrupt a crystal. These issues take on practical significance in graphene, a hexagonal two-dimensional crystal of carbon atoms; Single-atom-thick graphene sheets can now be produced by chemical vapor deposition on up to meter scales, making their polycrystallinity almost unavoidable. Theoretically, graphene grain boundaries are predicted to have distinct electronic, magnetic, chemical, and mechanical properties which strongly depend on their atomic arrangement. Yet, because of the five-order-of-magnitude size difference between grains and the atoms at grain boundaries, few experiments have fully explored the graphene grain structure. Here, we use a combination of old and new transmission electron microscope techniques to bridge these length scales. Using atomic-resolution imaging, we determine the location and identity of every atom at a grain boundary and find that different grains stitch together predominantly via pentagon-heptagon pairs. We then use diffraction-filtered imaging to rapidly map the location, orientation, and shape of several hundred grains and boundaries, where only a handful have been previously reported. The resulting images reveal an unexpectedly small and intricate patchwork of grains connected by tilt boundaries. By correlating grain imaging with scanned probe measurements, we show that these grain boundaries dramatically weaken the mechanical strength of graphene membranes, but do not measurably alter their electrical properties. These techniques open a new window for studies on the structure, properties, and control of grains and grain boundaries in graphene and other 2D materials., Comment: (1) PYH, CSR, and AMV contributed equally to this work. 30 pages, 4 figures, 8 supplementary figures, and supplementary information

We report mid-infrared spectroscopy measurements of ultrathin, electrostatically gated (Bi 1-x Sb x ) 2 Te 3 topological insulator films in which we observe several percent modulation of transmittance and reflectance as gating shifts the Fermi level. Infrared transmittance measurements of gated films were enabled by use of an epitaxial lift-off method for large-area transfer of topological insulator films from infrared-absorbing SrTiO 3 growth substrates to thermal oxidized silicon substrates. We combine these optical experiments with transport measurements and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to identify the observed spectral modulation as a gate-driven transfer of spectral weight between both bulk and 2D topological surface channels and interband and intraband channels. We develop a model for the complex permittivity of gated (Bi 1-x Sb x ) 2 Te 3 and find a good match to our experimental data. These results open the path for layered topological insulator materials as a new candidate for tunable, ultrathin infrared optics and highlight the possibility of switching topological optoelectronic phenomena between bulk and spin-polarized surface regimes.