Strain engineering of topological semimetal WTe₂ flakes

Strain engineering is a powerful technique to manipulate the electronic properties of nanostructured materials such as thin layers of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). In this talk, we report on the influence of externally applied strains on the physical properties of the topological Weyl semimetal WTe₂, a prototypical TMD. We developed different methods of applying strain (i.e., a three-point bending rig and controlled stretching/buckling via PDMS) and have found that applying strain to WTe₂ flakes has a negligible influence on the vibrational modes probed via Raman spectroscopy, whereas applying and releasing tensile strain can distinctly modulate the resistance of the flakes. We will further discuss how the charge carrier density, mobility, and magneto-transport properties vary as a function of the applied strains.