Giant Nonlinear Photon-Drag Currents in Centrosymmetric Moir\'e Bilayers

TL;DR

This paper develops a quantum geometric theory of nonlinear photon-drag currents in twisted bilayer graphene, revealing large, tunable optoelectronic responses in centrosymmetric moiré bilayers.

Contribution

It introduces a unified microscopic geometric-loop framework for photon-drag currents and applies it to accurately model twisted bilayer graphene.

Findings

Photon-drag currents are sizable in centrosymmetric TBG with small in-plane wavevectors.

Currents are highly tunable by twist angle, photon wavevector, and polarization.

The framework provides a transparent quantum-geometric interpretation of nonlinear optical phenomena.

Abstract

We present a unified microscopic theory of nonlinear photon-drag currents, formulated within a geometric-loop framework that provides both transparent quantum-geometric interpretation and numerical tractability. In this picture, the photon-drag shift current corresponds to the dipole moment of the geometric loop, while the photon-drag injection current arises from the same loop weighted by a band velocity difference. We apply the theory to an exact continuum model of twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) with ab initio accuracy. Remarkably, an in-plane wavevector only a few times larger than that of free-space photons already produces sizable photon-drag currents in centrosymmetric TBG, comparable to photogalvanic responses in typical noncentrosymmetric two-dimensional materials. These currents are broadly tunable by twist angle, photon wavevector, and light polarization. Our results establish a quantum geometric framework for nonlinear photon-drag phenomena and highlight moir\'e bilayers as promising platforms for large, highly tunable optoelectronic responses.