Abstract
The recent emergence of two-dimensional layered materials — in particular the transition metal dichalcogenides — provides
a new laboratory for exploring the internal quantum degrees of freedom of electrons and their potential for new electronics.
These degrees of freedom are the real electron spin, the layer pseudospin, and the valley pseudospin. New methods for the
quantum control of the spin and these pseudospins arise from the existence of Berry phase-related physical properties and
strong spin–orbit coupling. The former leads to the versatile control of the valley pseudospin, whereas the latter gives rise
to an interplay between the spin and the pseudospins. Here, we provide a brief review of both theoretical and experimental
advances in this field.