Strain effects on in-plane conductance of the topological insulator Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 3}

Journal Article · Mon Apr 21 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Applied Physics Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4873389· OSTI ID:22262532

Heui Hwang, Jin; Kwon, Sangku; Hun Kim, Jong; Park, Joonbum; Sung Kim, Jun ^[1]; Lee, Jhinhwan ^[2]; Lyeo, Ho-Ki ^[3]

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1. Department of Physics, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang 790-784 (Korea, Republic of)
2. Department of Physics, KAIST, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of)
3. Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, 267 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-340 (Korea, Republic of)

We investigated the correlation between electrical transport and mechanical stress in a topological insulator, Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 3}, using conductive probe atomic force microscopy in an ultrahigh vacuum environment. After directly measuring charge transport on the cleaved Bi{sub 2}Te{sub 3} surface, we found that the current density varied with applied load. Current mapping revealed a variation of the current on different terraces. The current density increased in the low-pressure regime and then decreased in the high-pressure regime. This variation of current density was explained in light of the combined effect of changes in the in-plane conductance due to spin–orbit coupling and hexagonal warping.

• OSTI ID: 22262532
• Journal Information: Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 104, Issue 16; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY
BISMUTH TELLURIDES
CURRENT DENSITY
ELECTRIC CONDUCTIVITY
ELECTRICAL INSULATORS
STRAINS
STRESSES
SURFACES
TOPOLOGY