Moiré Carbon: Prediction of a series of carbon allotropes with intrinsic Moiré superlattice

Abstract

Moiré superlattice with many novel electronic properties has become a frontier subject concerned in condensed physics recently. Traditional Moiré superlattice is a kind of artificial material obtained through an artificial angle-twist construction, so whether there is a material system with intrinsic Moiré superlattice has aroused much research interest. Here, a new type of carbon allotropes with intrinsic Moiré superlattice is predicted, which is named Moiré Carbon, consisting of two atomic planes with the upper and lower atomic planes connected with each other through a few atomic chains at a certain twist angle. The Moiré Carbon reported in this work is composed of the Moiré superlattice with the twist angles of 8.98°, 11.54°, 12.42° and 17.86°, respectively. Based on observation and calculation, an obvious flat band tendency is exhibited in the electronic band structure of Moiré Carbon with an angle of 8.98° and 12.42°, and the intrinsic superlattice structure of Moiré Carbon at all four twist angles is energetically stable. This theoretical prediction of Moiré Carbon is expected to provide a new idea for the study of Moiré superlattice system.