Mechanically sensing and tailoring electronic properties in two-dimensional atomic membranes

Two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals materials are both highly deformable atomic membranes and electrically active quantum materials. Most electronic and quantum states in both monolayer 2D materials and heterostructures are highly sensitive to strain and interlayer structure, and thus may be tuned mechanically. Here we explore the current frontiers using 2D material mechanics to sense, tune, tailor or even reconfigure electronic properties, device behavior and quantum states. We compare the relative impacts of different kinds of mechanical perturbations including in-plane strain, out-of-plane vibrations, inhomogeneous three-dimensional deformations, instabilities of membranes under compression like crumpling and wrinkling, and interlayer slip. Throughout, we explore how each form of coupling may be used for applications that cannot be realized in the flat unperturbed materials including tunable nanoelectromechanical systems, strain resilient electronics, multifunctional surfaces and reconfigurable quantum systems.