Substrate Role in Polaron Formation on Single-layer Transition Metal Dihalides

Substrate Role in Polaron Formation on Single-layer Transition Metal Dihalides | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Substrate Role in Polaron Formation on Single-layer Transition Metal Dihalides Affan Safeer, Oktay Güleryüz, Guangyao Miao, Wouter Jolie, Thomas Michely, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8419446/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Single-layer transition metal dihalides grown on conducting substrates were shown to host stable polarons. Here, we investigate polarons in insulating single-layer MnBr$_2$ grown by molecular beam epitaxy on three different substrates, namely graphene on Ir(110), graphene on Ir(111), and Au(111). The number densities and species of polarons observed vary strongly as a function of the substrate. For MnBr$_2$ grown on Ir(110) the largest number of polaron species is observed, namely four, of which three show clear similarities with the species observed for CoCl$_2$ on graphite. Polarons in single-layer MnBr$_2$ are observed up to 300,K. They can be created, converted, and moved by the STM tip when a tunneling current flows at a proper bias voltage. For graphene on Ir(110) as a substrate, mobile polarons in MnBr$_2$ are guided through the periodic potential imposed from the super-moiré resulting from the interaction of MnBr$_2$ with graphene and Ir(110). Our findings indicate that modeling of polarons in such single-layer insulators in contact with a conducting substrate requires to take the substrate explicitly into account. Physical sciences/Physics/Condensed-matter physics/Surfaces, interfaces and thin films Physical sciences/Materials science/Nanoscale materials/Two-dimensional materials Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SI.pdf Supplementary Information Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8419446","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":564093668,"identity":"9d36a096-7451-4eaf-9473-d9e57277e5dd","order_by":0,"name":"Affan Safeer","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABB0lEQVRIie2RsWrDMBCGTwjkxdDVxkNf4UIgodTkWWwEGdNAILNLwVkMWfMYfoAOZwSegrsaPMTF0DndCg2kctNCFyUZO+gT6HRwH/yHACyWfwlr9RUCOomuqA9w/RLnFK6HYAro0q/CrlIUoBd9t5eV25Vi7fvzy2wMkQjmcxjeOI9pC8vQqOBW8sHmrVncJSSCDcLIz4oVQjU1K/BQBi41cV4kInDxGGIdpx5LlTnYunM+D1TFuYJegRB3r71yNC9TS8GBKM7LkzLCmvUKmYPVHfczkgvcsqd7rQz9TAeLKnkmmGT7D5rMcNcVjXuAwdpRpbdfTszBfohO3/GnvUaxWCwWi4Ev8YVR0otIuHkAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6882-0596","institution":"II. 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Here, we investigate polarons in insulating single-layer MnBr$_2$ grown by molecular beam epitaxy on three different substrates, namely graphene on Ir(110), graphene on Ir(111), and Au(111). The number densities and species of polarons observed vary strongly as a function of the substrate. For MnBr$_2$ grown on Ir(110) the largest number of polaron species is observed, namely four, of which three show clear similarities with the species observed for CoCl$_2$ on graphite. Polarons in single-layer MnBr$_2$ are observed up to 300\\,K. They can be created, converted, and moved by the STM tip when a tunneling current flows at a proper bias voltage. For graphene on Ir(110) as a substrate, mobile polarons in MnBr$_2$ are guided through the periodic potential imposed from the super-moiré resulting from the interaction of MnBr$_2$ with graphene and Ir(110). 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