Wang Yao

Current Research

• Two-dimensional materials and their van der Waals heterostructure
• Moiré superlattice physics
• Valleytronics and spintronics

Research Interest

• Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics
• Quantum Physics
• Optical Physics

Education

• UC San Diego (2001 — 2006)
• BS Peking University (1997 — 2001)

Representative Publications

• "Luminescence Anomaly of Dipolar Valley Excitons in Homobilayer Semiconductor Moiré Superlattices", Hongyi Yu and Wang Yao, Phys. Rev. X, 11, 38 (2021)
• "Layer Pseudospin Dynamics and Genuine Non-Abelian Berry Phase in Inhomogeneously Strained Moiré Pattern", Dawei Zhai and Wang Yao, Phys. Rev. Lett., 125, 266404 (2020)
• "Signatures of moiré-trapped valley excitons in MoSe2/WSe2 heterobilayers", K. Seyler, P. Rivera, H. Yu, N. Wilson, E. Ray, D. Mandrus, J. Yan, W. Yao, X. Xu, Nature, 567, 66 (2019)
• "Gate tuning from exciton superfluid to quantum anomalous Hall in van der Waals heterobilayer", Qizhong Zhu, Wei-Yuan Tu, Qingjun Tong and Wang Yao, Science Advances, 5, eaau6120 (2019)
• "Moire excitons: from programmable quantum emitter arrays to spin-orbit coupled artificial lattices", Hongyi Yu, Guibin Liu, Jianju Tang, Xiaodong Xu and Wang Yao, Science Advances, 3, e1701696 (2017)
• "Topological Mosaic in Moiré superlattices of van der Waals heterobilayers", Q. Tong, H. Yu, Q. Zhu, Y. Wang, X. Xu, Wang Yao, Nature Physics, 13, 356 (2017)
• "Anomalous light cones and valley optical selection rules of interlayer excitons in twisted heterobilayers", Hongyi Yu, Y. Wang, Qingjun Tong, X. Xu and Wang Yao, Phys. Rev. Lett., 115, 187002 (2015)
• “Dirac cones and Dirac saddle points of bright excitons in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides”, H.Y. Yu, G.B. Liu, P. Gong, X.D. Xu and W. Yao, Nature Communications, 5, 3876 (2014)
• "Optical generation of excitonic valley coherence in monolayer WSe2", A. Jones, H.Y. Yu, N. Ghimire, S.F. Wu, G. Aivazian, J. Ross, B. Zhao, J.Q. Yan, D. Mandrus, D. Xiao, W. Yao, X.D. Xu, Nature Nanotechnology, 8, 634 (2013)
• "Magnetoelectric effects and valley controlled spin quantum gates in transition metal dichalcogenide bilayers", Z.R. Gong, G.B. Liu, H.Y. Yu, D. Xiao, X.D. Cui, X.D. Xu, W. Yao, Nature Communications, 4, 2053 (2013)
• "Coupled Spin and Valley Physics in Monolayers of MoS2 and Other Group-VI Dichalcogenides", D. Xiao, G.B. Liu, W.X. Feng, X.D. Xu and W. Yao, Physical Review Letters, 108, 196802 (2012)

Awards and Honours

• 2020 | Fellow of American Physical Society
• 2020 | Croucher Senior Research Fellow
• 2018, 2019 & 2020 | Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate Analytics
• 2014/15 | Outstanding Researcher Award, The University of Hong Kong
• 2014 | OCPA Achievement in Asia Award (Robert T. Poe Prize)
• 2013/14 | Research Output Prize (Faculty of Science), The University of Hong Kong
• 2013 | Croucher Innovation Award
• 2012/13 | Outstanding Young Researcher Award, The University of Hong Kong