Light-Driven Raman Coherence as a Nonthermal Route to Ultrafast Topology Switching in a Dirac Semimetal
Abstract
A grand challenge underlies the entire field of topology-enabled quantum logic and information science: how to establish topological control principles driven by quantum coherence and understand the time dependence of such periodic driving. Here we demonstrate a few-cycle THz-pulse-induced phase transition in a Dirac semimetal ZrTe5 that is periodically driven by vibrational coherence due to excitation of the lowest Raman active mode. Above a critical THz-pump field threshold, there emerges a long-lived metastable phase, approximately 100 ps, with unique Raman phonon-assisted topological switching dynamics absent for optical pumping. The switching also manifests itself by distinct features: nonthermal spectral shape, relaxation slowing near the Lifshitz transition where the critical Dirac point occurs, and diminishing signals at the same temperature that the Berry-curvature-induced anomalous Hall effect magnetoresistance vanishes. These results, together with first-principles modeling, identify a mode-selective Raman coupling that drives the system from strong to weak topological insulators with a Dirac semimetal phase established at a critical atomic displacement controlled by the phonon coherent pumping. Harnessing of vibrational coherence can be extended to steer symmetry-breaking transitions, i.e., Dirac to Weyl ones, with implications for THz topological quantum gate and error correction applications.
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Center for the Advancement of Topological Semimetals (CATS); Ames Laboratory (AMES), Ames, IA (United States); Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Univ. of Alabama, Birmingham, AL (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division (MSE); National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1615164
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1616168; OSTI ID: 1617685; OSTI ID: 1971741
- Report Number(s):
- IS-J-10,200; BNL-215914-2020-JAAM
Journal ID: ISSN 2160-3308; PRXHAE; 021013
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-07CH11358; SC0012704; SC0019137; EECS 1611454
- Resource Type:
- Published Article
- Journal Name:
- Physical Review. X
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Physical Review. X Journal Volume: 10 Journal Issue: 2; Journal ID: ISSN 2160-3308
- Publisher:
- American Physical Society (APS)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; topolgical phases of matter; topological materials; Terahertz techniques; ultrafast pump-probe spectroscopy
Citation Formats
Vaswani, C., Wang, L. -L., Mudiyanselage, D. H., Li, Q., Lozano, P. M., Gu, G. D., Cheng, D., Song, B., Luo, L., Kim, R. H. J., Huang, C., Liu, Z., Mootz, M., Perakis, I. E., Yao, Y., Ho, K. M., and Wang, J. Light-Driven Raman Coherence as a Nonthermal Route to Ultrafast Topology Switching in a Dirac Semimetal. United States: N. p., 2020.
Web. doi:10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021013.
Vaswani, C., Wang, L. -L., Mudiyanselage, D. H., Li, Q., Lozano, P. M., Gu, G. D., Cheng, D., Song, B., Luo, L., Kim, R. H. J., Huang, C., Liu, Z., Mootz, M., Perakis, I. E., Yao, Y., Ho, K. M., & Wang, J. Light-Driven Raman Coherence as a Nonthermal Route to Ultrafast Topology Switching in a Dirac Semimetal. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021013
Vaswani, C., Wang, L. -L., Mudiyanselage, D. H., Li, Q., Lozano, P. M., Gu, G. D., Cheng, D., Song, B., Luo, L., Kim, R. H. J., Huang, C., Liu, Z., Mootz, M., Perakis, I. E., Yao, Y., Ho, K. M., and Wang, J. Fri .
"Light-Driven Raman Coherence as a Nonthermal Route to Ultrafast Topology Switching in a Dirac Semimetal". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021013.
@article{osti_1615164,
title = {Light-Driven Raman Coherence as a Nonthermal Route to Ultrafast Topology Switching in a Dirac Semimetal},
author = {Vaswani, C. and Wang, L. -L. and Mudiyanselage, D. H. and Li, Q. and Lozano, P. M. and Gu, G. D. and Cheng, D. and Song, B. and Luo, L. and Kim, R. H. J. and Huang, C. and Liu, Z. and Mootz, M. and Perakis, I. E. and Yao, Y. and Ho, K. M. and Wang, J.},
abstractNote = {A grand challenge underlies the entire field of topology-enabled quantum logic and information science: how to establish topological control principles driven by quantum coherence and understand the time dependence of such periodic driving. Here we demonstrate a few-cycle THz-pulse-induced phase transition in a Dirac semimetal ZrTe5 that is periodically driven by vibrational coherence due to excitation of the lowest Raman active mode. Above a critical THz-pump field threshold, there emerges a long-lived metastable phase, approximately 100 ps, with unique Raman phonon-assisted topological switching dynamics absent for optical pumping. The switching also manifests itself by distinct features: nonthermal spectral shape, relaxation slowing near the Lifshitz transition where the critical Dirac point occurs, and diminishing signals at the same temperature that the Berry-curvature-induced anomalous Hall effect magnetoresistance vanishes. These results, together with first-principles modeling, identify a mode-selective Raman coupling that drives the system from strong to weak topological insulators with a Dirac semimetal phase established at a critical atomic displacement controlled by the phonon coherent pumping. Harnessing of vibrational coherence can be extended to steer symmetry-breaking transitions, i.e., Dirac to Weyl ones, with implications for THz topological quantum gate and error correction applications.},
doi = {10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021013},
journal = {Physical Review. X},
number = 2,
volume = 10,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Apr 17 00:00:00 EDT 2020},
month = {Fri Apr 17 00:00:00 EDT 2020}
}
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https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.10.021013
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