RESEARCHERS TRAP ELECTRONS FOR THE FIRST TIME.

A team of researchers at the Kavli Institute at Cornell for Nanoscale Sciences has developed a revolutionary way of stacking two-dimensional semiconductors and trap electrons in a recurring manner that forms an elusive and long-hypothesized crystal. It is to be noted that the a crystal of electrons was first proposed by theoretical physicist Eugene Wigner. According to him if the repulsion between negatively charged electrons (Coulomb's force) predominantes the kinetic energy of the electrons then a crystal would form, thus letting humans to cage the subatomic particles. 

     

      

       The Cornell-led collaboration built a trap by stacking two semiconductor layers viz. tungsten disulfide (WS2) and tungsten diselenide ( WSe2), which created a moire superlattice structure. The energy barrier between the sites locks the electrons in space that allowed the team to observe a range of Wigner Crystals.

        Researchers Kin Fai Mak and Jie Shan are the co-senior authors of the research paper. Among the other members of the team include researchers from Columbia University and National Institute of Material Sciences, Japan.