Lateral Interfaces of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides: A Stable Tunable One-Dimensional Physics Platform

Abstract: We study in-plane lateral heterostructures of commensurate transition-metal dichalcogenides, such as MoS${2}$-WS${2}$ and MoSe${2}$-WSe${2}$, and find interfacial and edge states that are highly localized to these regions of the heterostructure. These are one-dimensional (1D) in nature, lying within the bandgap of the bulk structure and exhibiting complex orbital and spin structure. We describe such heteroribbons with a three-orbital tight-binding model that uses first principles and experimental parameters as input, allowing us to model realistic systems. Analytical modeling for the 1D interfacial bands results in long-range hoppings due to the hybridization along the interface, with strong spin-orbit couplings. We further explore the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida indirect interaction between magnetic impurities located at the interface. The unusual features of the interface states result in effective long-range exchange non-collinear interactions between impurities. These results suggest that transition-metal dichalcogenide interfaces could serve as stable, tunable 1D platform with unique properties for possible use in exploring Majorana fermions, plasma excitations and spintronics applications.