Topology-induced phase transitions in quantum spin Hall lattices

Journal Article · Tue Feb 15 00:00:00 EST 2011 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVA.83.023609· OSTI ID:21537199

Bercioux, D; Goldman, N; Urban, D F ^[1]

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1. Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Albert-Ludwigs-Universitaet, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany and Physikalisches Institut, Albert-Ludwigs-Universitaet, D-79104 Freiburg (Germany)

Physical phenomena driven by topological properties, such as the quantum Hall effect, have the appealing feature that they are robust with respect to external perturbations. Lately, a new class of materials has emerged that manifests topological properties at room temperature and without the need of external magnetic fields. These topological insulators are band insulators with large spin-orbit interactions and exhibit the quantum spin-Hall (QSH) effect. Here we investigate the transition between QSH and normal insulating phases under topological deformations of a two-dimensional lattice. We demonstrate that the QSH phase present in the honeycomb lattice loses its robustness as the occupancy of extra lattice sites is allowed. Furthermore, we propose a method for verifying our predictions with fermionic cold atoms in optical lattices. In this context, the spin-orbit interaction is engineered via an appropriate synthetic gauge field.

• OSTI ID: 21537199
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Vol. 83, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.83.023609; (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 1050-2947
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
ATOMS
DEFORMATION
DISTURBANCES
FERMIONS
HALL EFFECT
L-S COUPLING
MAGNETIC FIELDS
PERTURBATION THEORY
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
SPIN
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K
TOPOLOGY
TWO-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS
ANGULAR MOMENTUM
COUPLING
INTERMEDIATE COUPLING
MATHEMATICS
PARTICLE PROPERTIES
TEMPERATURE RANGE