Spin-Stabilization by Coulomb Blockade in a Vanadium Dimer in WSe₂

Charged dopants in 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have been associated with the formation of hydrogenic bound states, defect-bound trions, and gate-controlled magnetism. Charge-transfer at the TMD–substrate interface and the proximity to other charged defects can be used to regulate the occupation of the dopant’s energy levels. In this study, we examine vanadium-doped WSe₂ monolayers on quasi-freestanding epitaxial graphene, by high-resolution scanning probe microscopy and ab initio calculations. Vanadium atoms substitute W atoms and adopt a negative charge state through charge donation from the graphene substrate. V_W^–1 dopants exhibit a series of occupied p-type defect states, accompanied by an intriguing electronic fine-structure that we attribute to hydrogenic states bound to the charged impurity. We systematically studied the hybridization in V dimers with different separations. For large dimer separations, the 2e^– charge state prevails, and the magnetic moment is quenched. However, the Coulomb blockade in the nearest-neighbor dimer configuration stabilizes a 1e^– charge state. The nearest-neighbor V-dimer exhibits an open-shell character for the frontier defect orbital, giving rise to a paramagnetic ground state. Our findings provide microscopic insights into the charge stabilization and many-body effects of single dopants and dopant pairs in a TMD host material.