Ultrafast Spontaneous Localization of a Jahn-Teller Exciton Polaron in Two-Dimensional Semiconducting CrI<sub>3</sub> by Symmetry Breaking.

Li, Xufeng; Wang, Aolei; Chen, Hailong; Tao, Weijian; Chen, Zeng; Zhang, Chi; Li, Yujie; Zhang, Yiran et al. · Nano Lett · 2022

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

The excited state species and properties in low-dimensional semiconductors can be completely redefined by electron-lattice coupling or a polaronic effect. Here, by combining ultrafast broadband pump-probe spectroscopy and first-principles GW and Bethe-Salpeter equation calculations, we show semiconducting CrI<sub>3</sub> as a prototypical 2D polaronic system with characteristic Jahn-Teller exciton polaron induced by symmetry breaking. A photogenerated electron and hole in CrI<sub>3</sub> localize spontaneously in ∼0.9 ps and pair geminately to a Jahn-Teller exciton polaron with elongated Cr-I octahedra, large binding energy, and an unprecedentedly small exciton-exciton annihilation rate constant (∼10<sup>-20</sup> cm<sup>3</sup> s<sup>-1</sup>). Coherent phonon dynamics indicates the localization is mainly triggered by the coherent nuclear vibration of the I-Cr-I out-of-plane stretch mode at 128.5 ± 0.1 cm<sup>-1</sup>. The excited state Jahn-Teller exciton polaron in CrI<sub>3</sub> broadens the realm of 2D polaron systems and reveals the decisive role of coupled electron-lattice motion on excited state properties and exciton physics in 2D semiconductors.