Optical Transitions and Circular Dichroism in Moiré Minibands of Twisted MoTe₂

The formation of Landau-level-like electronic minibands in moiré materials has led to the discovery of correlated topological phases in the absence of an external magnetic field. In this presentation, we explore the optical transitions between these minibands across a wide range of twist angles in twisted MoTe₂. Our study reveals a significant relationship between circular dichroism and the topological nature of the bands, which can be further modulated by doping levels and external fields. We examine the physical mechanisms underlying the evolution of optical conductivity and draw comparisons between optical transitions in moiré minibands and Landau level spectroscopy in quantum wells. Additionally, we connect the optical circular polarization to the vortexable minibands, proposing an optical pathway to investigate moiré systems hosting interacting topological phases and fractional quantum anomalous Hall states in higher Landau levels. Our findings provide insights into how these phenomena can be experimentally probed using terahertz and nonlinear optical spectroscopy techniques.