About

Luis A. Jauregui is a Principal Investigator and the director of the Quantum Materials and Devices Laboratory at the University of California, Irvine. Born and raised in Callao, Peru, he completed his undergraduate studies at UNI-Peru and gained research experience at Texas A&M. In 2008, he began his Ph.D. studies at Purdue University, working in the group of Yong P. Chen in collaboration with Leonid Rokhinson. His research focused on electron and phonon transport in graphene and topological nanostructures. During his graduate studies, he was awarded the Intel Ph.D. Fellowship and the Purdue Research Foundation Fellowship. He also created nanoREPU, a program aimed at fostering diversity in STEM graduate programs, which has mentored 17 students since its inception. After earning his Ph.D., Luis completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University under the guidance of Philip Kim, collaborating with Hongkun Park, Misha Lukin, and Federico Capasso. His postdoctoral work centered on studying the optical properties of van der Waals heterostructures. Since 2019, he has served as an assistant professor at the Physics Department at UCI and is the director of the Irvine Quantum Material Center.

Research topics

• Materials science
• Condensed matter physics
• Optoelectronics
• Nanotechnology
• Physics

Selected publications

• Berry curvature dipole-induced gain and lasing in Tellurium

  2026-03-05

  article

  We explore terahertz (THz) amplification and lasing in n-doped Tellurium (Te) using its large Berry Curvature Dipole. By applying a static electric bias, we induce a non-Hermitian electro-optic effect that enables mode-selective gain. Depending on the orientation of the electrical bias and wave vector with respect to the trigonal axis of Te, it can support either circularly or elliptically polarized modes with tunable gain and polarization via applied bias. We also analyze lasing conditions in a Fabry–Perot cavity using Te as the active medium and find that lasing occurs in discrete intervals below the material’s breakdown field. Our findings highlight the potential of chiral Te for electrically tunable, polarization-selective THz lasers.

  PublisherDOI

• Dynamic Carrier Modulation via Nonlinear Acoustoelectric Transport in van der Waals Heterostructures

  Nano Letters · 2025-09-13 · 1 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Dynamically manipulating carriers in van der Waals heterostructures could enable solid-state quantum simulators with tunable lattice parameters. A key requirement is the formation of deep potential wells to reliably trap excitations. Here, we report the observation of nonlinear acoustoelectric transport and dynamic carrier modulation in boron nitride-encapsulated graphene devices coupled to intense surface acoustic waves (SAWs) on LiNbO3 substrates. SAWs generate strong acoustoelectric current densities (JAE), transitioning from linear to nonlinear regimes with increasing SAW intensity. In the nonlinear regime, periodic carrier (electrons, holes, or their mixtures) stripes emerge. Using counter-propagating SAWs, we create standing SAWs (SSAWs) to dynamically manipulate charge distributions without static gates. The saturation of JAE, attenuation transitions, and tunable resistance peaks confirms strong carrier localization. These results establish SAWs as a powerful tool for controlling carrier dynamics in two-dimensional (2D) materials, paving the way for the development of time-dependent quantum systems and acoustic lattices for quantum simulation.

  PublisherDOI

• Dynamic Carrier Modulation via Nonlinear Acoustoelectric Transport in van der Waals Heterostructures

  ArXiv.org · 2025-03-20

  preprintOpen accessSenior author

  Dynamically manipulating carriers in van der Waals heterostructures could enable solid-state quantum simulators with tunable lattice parameters. A key requirement is forming deep potential wells to reliably trap excitations. Here, we report the observation of nonlinear acoustoelectric transport and dynamic carrier modulation in boron nitride-encapsulated graphene devices coupled to intense surface acoustic waves (SAWs) on LiNbO3 substrates. SAWs generate strong acoustoelectric current densities (JAE), transitioning from linear to nonlinear regimes with increasing SAW intensity. In the nonlinear regime, periodic carrier (electrons, holes, or their mixtures) stripes emerge. Using counter-propagating SAWs, we create standing SAWs (SSAWs) to dynamically manipulate charge distributions without static gates. The saturation of JAE, attenuation transitions, and tunable resistance peaks confirm strong carrier localization. These results establish SAWs as a powerful tool for controlling carrier dynamics in two-dimensional (2D) materials, paving the way for the development of time-dependent quantum systems and acoustic lattices for quantum simulation.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Persistent Metallicity and Systematic Vacancies in Tellurium-based Quasi-One-Dimensional Chevrel-Type Single Crystals

  ChemRxiv · 2025-04-17

  preprintOpen access

  The coexistence of prominent structural anisotropies with low-dimensional structural units that approach the atomic scale has endowed numerous emergent materials with unusual and, often, sought-after physical properties. Recently, the highly modular class of ternary transition metal Chevrel-type chalcogenides, consisting of infinite quasi-one-dimensional (q-1D) [Mo3Q3]n– (Q = S, Se, or Te) columnar chains with sub-nanometer-thicknesses intercalated with A+ (A = alkali or rare metals) cations, has garnered renewed interest owing to their potential to manifest q-1D metallic character, superconducting behavior, and predicted 1D Dirac Fermionic states. However, because these q-1D crystals tend to form micron-scale polycrystals, it has often been difficult to thoroughly investigate their structure and chemistry, as well as their sought-after emergent properties. In this study, we demonstrate the vapor-phase-assisted synthesis of sizeable and well-defined single crystals of a tellurium-based q-1D Chevrel-like crystal, In2–δMo6Te6, facilitating detailed investigations of its crystal structure and electronic properties. These crystals showed distinct signatures of structural 1D anisotropy and a persistent metallic character down to 1.7 K, despite the prevailing theory that q-1D metals undergo Peierls distortion. Intriguingly, we uniquely found from the combination of experimental single crystal refinements and first-principles calculations that the distinct structure, radius ratios, and composition intrinsically impose a thermodynamically favored fractional vacancy in roughly 1/8 of the cationic In sites. These results highlight the potential for chemical, structural, and physical property modulation in this class of metallic q-1D crystals that display suitable electronic states for next-generation functional devices.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Possible Spin-Triplet Excitonic Insulator in the Ultraquantum Limit of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:mrow><mml:msub><mml:mrow><mml:mi>HfTe</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mn>5</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:mrow></mml:math>

  Physical Review Letters · 2025-06-16 · 3 citations

  preprintOpen accessSenior author

  More than 50 years ago, excitonic insulators formed by the pairing of electrons and holes due to Coulomb interactions were first predicted [A. N. Kozlov and L. A. Maksimov, Sov. J. Exp. Theor. Phys. 21, 790 (1965); L. V. Keldysh and Y. V. Kopaev, Sov. Phys. Solid State 6, 2219 (1965)SPSSA70038-5654; D. Jérome, T. M. Rice, and W. Kohn, Phys. Rev. 158, 462 (1967)PHRVAO0031-899X10.1103/PhysRev.158.462]. Since then, excitonic insulators have been observed in various classes of materials, including quantum Hall bilayers, graphite, transition metal chalcogenides, and more recently in moiré superlattices. In these excitonic insulators, an electron and a hole with the same spin bind together, and the resulting exciton is a spin singlet. Here, we report the experimental observation of a spin-triplet excitonic insulator in the ultra-quantum limit of a three-dimensional topological material HfTe_{5}. We observe that the spin-polarized zeroth Landau bands dispersing along the field direction cross each other beyond a characteristic magnetic field in HfTe_{5}, forming the one-dimensional Weyl mode. Transport measurements reveal the emergence of a gap of about 250 μeV when the field surpasses a critical threshold. By performing the material-specific modeling, we identify this gap as a consequence of a spin-triplet exciton formation, where electrons and holes with opposite spin form bound states, and the translational symmetry is preserved. The system reaches charge neutrality following the gap opening, as evidenced by the zero Hall conductivity over a wide magnetic field range (10-72 T). Our finding of the spin-triplet excitonic insulator paves the way for studying novel spin transport including spin superfluidity, spin Josephson currents, and Coulomb drag of spin currents in analogy to the transport properties associated with the layer pseudospin in quantum Hall bilayers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Bonding-imposed crystallization of 1D nanostructures based on a luminescent and anisotropic 2D van der Waals crystal

  ChemRxiv · 2025-05-07

  preprintOpen access

  Physical states in nanoscale solids are tied to their crystalline order, morphology, and size. However, deterministically accessing different nanocrystal morphologies from a single phase usually involves complex synthetic routes, catalysts, or multi-step lithographic techniques. Here, we demonstrate the catalyst-free synthesis of nanosheets and nanowires based on the luminescent 2D van der Waals (vdW) phase, GaTe, as a model phase that manifests atomic precision and a highly anisotropic quasi-1D substructure. We program the size and morphology of the resulting nanostructures by varying the relative rates of precursor deposition and diffusion, achieving dense, uniform, and widespread growth. Ultrathin nanowires resulting from this synthesis exhibit strikingly enhanced low-temperature luminescence with narrow near-infrared (NIR) emission bandwidths. These spectral characteristics arise from defect-bound states confined within a nanowire morphology that acts as a deep sub-wavelength optical cavity, making them suitable as optical emitters with small footprints either as stand-alone structures or coupled with other vdW crystals.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Persistent metallicity and systematic vacancies in tellurium-based quasi-one-dimensional Chevrel-type single crystals

  Matter · 2025-12-08

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Seeing in with X-rays: 4D Strain and Thermometry Measurements for Thermal-Mechanical Testing

  2024-04-01

  reportOpen access

  Understanding temperature-dependent material decomposition and structural deformation induced by combined thermal-mechanical environments is critical for safety qualification of hardware under accident scenarios. Seeing in with X-rays elucidated the physics necessary to develop X-ray strain and thermometry diagnostics for use in optically opaque environments. Two parallel thermometry schemes were explored: X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffraction of inorganic doped ceramics– colloquially known as thermographic phosphors. Two parallel surface strain techniques–Path-Integrated Digital Image Correlation and Frequency Multiplexed Digital Image Correlation–were demonstrated. Finally, preliminary demonstration of time-resolved digital volume correlation was performed by taking advantage of limited view reconstruction techniques. Additionally, research into blended ceramic-metal coatings was critical to generating intrinsic thermographic patterns for the future combination of X-ray strain and thermometry measurements.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Controlled interlayer exciton ionization in an electrostatic trap in atomically thin heterostructures

  Nature Communications · 2024-08-08 · 12 citations

  articleOpen access

  Atomically thin semiconductor heterostructures provide a two-dimensional (2D) device platform for creating high densities of cold, controllable excitons. Interlayer excitons (IEs), bound electrons and holes localized to separate 2D quantum well layers, have permanent out-of-plane dipole moments and long lifetimes, allowing their spatial distribution to be tuned on demand. Here, we employ electrostatic gates to trap IEs and control their density. By electrically modulating the IE Stark shift, electron-hole pair concentrations above 2 × 1012 cm−2 can be achieved. At this high IE density, we observe an exponentially increasing linewidth broadening indicative of an IE ionization transition, independent of the trap depth. This runaway threshold remains constant at low temperatures, but increases above 20 K, consistent with the quantum dissociation of a degenerate IE gas. Our demonstration of the IE ionization in a tunable electrostatic trap represents an important step towards the realization of dipolar exciton condensates in solid-state optoelectronic devices. Here, the authors use electrostatic gates to trap interlayer excitons (IE) in MoSe2/WSe2 heterobilayers. They observe an exponential broadening of the IE emission linewidth that signals the IE ionization threshold.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Exceptional electronic transport and quantum oscillations in thin bismuth crystals grown inside van der Waals materials

  Nature Materials · 2024-05-13 · 30 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• CAREER: Acoustic-driven Manipulation of Electrons and Exciton Species in Atomically-thin Quantum Materials

  NSF · $731k · 2022–2028

Frequent coauthors

• Philip Kim

  Delft University of Technology

  51 shared

• Yong P. Chen

  Tohoku University

  50 shared

• You Zhou

  State Key Laboratory of Automotive Simulation and Control

  27 shared

• Hongkun Park

  Harvard University

  27 shared

• Andrew Y. Joe

  Harvard University

  26 shared

• Kateryna Pistunova

  Harvard University

  26 shared

• Mikhail D. Lukin

  Harvard University

  24 shared

• Kristiaan De Greve

  24 shared

Education

• PhD, Electrical Engineering/Solid State Physics

  Purdue University

  2015

Awards & honors

• Intel Ph.D. Fellowship
• Purdue Research Foundation Fellowship