Layer-tunable Hubbard bands probed via moiré excitons in MoSe$_2$/WS$_2$ heterostructures

Abstract

Moiré superlattices in transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructures provide a highly tunable platform for engineering strongly interacting states at the nanoscale. However, quantitatively determining and in-situ tuning of the underlying Hubbard parameters remains experimentally challenging. Here, we report electric-field-driven reordering of layer-specific Hubbard bands by performing optical spectroscopy on a dual-gated, 60°-aligned MoSe$_2$/WS$_2$ heterobilayer. Using two spatially distinct moiré excitons as local optical probes and tracking them as a function of carrier filling and vertical electric field, we quantitatively extract the layer-dependent on-site Coulomb repulsions, U$_M$~60 meV in MoSe$_2$ and U$_W$~30 meV in WS$_2$. Furthermore, we stabilize generalized Wigner crystal and stripe phases by electrostatically tuning the system to a type-II band alignment, shifting the ground state into the WS$_2$ layer where reduced on-site repulsion allows inter-site Coulomb interactions to dominate. Our results establish vertical electric fields as a deterministic tuning knob for layer-selective Hubbard physics, enabling device-level control of complex many-body phases.