Probing van der Waals Potentials in Twisted hBN Moiré Superlattices

When a twist angle is applied between two layered materials (LMs), the moiré superlattice spatially modulates the registry of the layers and the sample functional properties. Several works have recently explored the optical, [1] electric, [2] and electro-mechanical [3] moiré-dependent properties of such twisted LMs, but no direct visualization and quantification of van der Waals (vdW) interactions has been presented, so far. Here, we show the application of tapping mode AFM phase imaging to probe the stacking-dependent vdW potential in twisted hBN moiré superlattices. [4] This technique is non-invasive, compatible with every environment and no sample perturbation is required. Additionally, we will discuss some recent result on the (electro-) mechanical properties of t-hBN moiré patterns. [5]<br/><br/><br/>[1] S. L. Moore <i>et al</i>., Nat. Commun., <b>12</b>, 5741 (2021)<br/>[2] C. R. Woods <i>et al</i>., Nat. Commun. <b>12</b>, 347 (2021)<br/>[3] L. J. McGilly <i>et al</i>., Nat. Nanotechnol., <b>15</b>, 580–584 (2020)<br/>[4] S. Chiodini <i>et al.</i>, ACS Nano <b>16</b>, 7589-7604 (2022)<br/>[5] S. Chiodini <i>et al</i>., arXiv:2406.02195 (2024)