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Title: First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface

Abstract

Majorana zero modes, with prospective applications in topological quantum computing, are expected to arise in superconductor/ semiconductor interfaces, such as β-Sn and InSb. However, proximity to the superconductor may also adversely affect the semiconductor’s local properties. A tunnel barrier inserted at the interface could resolve this issue. We assess the wide band gap semiconductor, CdTe, as a candidate material to mediate the coupling at the lattice-matched interface between α-Sn and InSb. To this end, we use density functional theory (DFT) with Hubbard U corrections, whose values are machine-learned via Bayesian optimization (BO) [npj Computational Materials 2020, 6, 180]. The results of DFT+U(BO) are validated against angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) experiments for α-Sn and CdTe. For CdTe, the z-unfolding method [Advanced Quantum Technologies 2022, 5, 2100033] is used to resolve the contributions of different kz values to the ARPES. We then study the band offsets and the penetration depth of metal-induced gap states (MIGS) in bilayer interfaces of InSb/α-Sn, InSb/CdTe, and CdTe/α-Sn, as well as in trilayer interfaces of InSb/CdTe/α-Sn with increasing thickness of CdTe. We find that 16 atomic layers (3.5 nm) of CdTe can serve as a tunnel barrier, effectively shielding the InSb from MIGS from the α-Sn.more » This may guide the choice of dimensions of the CdTe barrier to mediate the coupling in semiconductor–superconductor devices in future Majorana zero modes experiments.« less

Authors:
ORCiD logo [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [2];  [1];  [1];  [3]; ORCiD logo [3]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [5];  [1]; ORCiD logo [6]
  1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15260, United States
  2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
  3. Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Grenoble INP, Institut Néel, Grenoble 38000, France
  4. Materials Department, University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California 93106, United States
  5. Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Grenoble INP, Institut Néel, Grenoble 38000, France, Paul Scherrer Institut, Swiss Light Source, Villigen PSI CH-5232, Switzerland
  6. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California 93106, United States, Department of Chemistry, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Science Foundation (NSF); National Institutes of Health (NIH)
OSTI Identifier:
1962446
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1967334
Grant/Contract Number:  
SC-0019274; SC0019274; AC02-05CH11231; OISE-1743717; S10OD028483
Resource Type:
Published Article
Journal Name:
ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Name: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces Journal Volume: 15 Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 1944-8244
Publisher:
American Chemical Society
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY; density functional theory; electronic structure; angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy; metal−semiconductor interface; tunnel barrier; InSb; CdTe; Sn

Citation Formats

Jardine, Malcolm J. A., Dardzinski, Derek, Yu, Maituo, Purkayastha, Amrita, Chen, An-Hsi, Chang, Yu-Hao, Engel, Aaron, Strocov, Vladimir N., Hocevar, Moïra, Palmstro̷m, Chris, Frolov, Sergey M., and Marom, Noa. First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface. United States: N. p., 2023. Web. doi:10.1021/acsami.3c00323.
Jardine, Malcolm J. A., Dardzinski, Derek, Yu, Maituo, Purkayastha, Amrita, Chen, An-Hsi, Chang, Yu-Hao, Engel, Aaron, Strocov, Vladimir N., Hocevar, Moïra, Palmstro̷m, Chris, Frolov, Sergey M., & Marom, Noa. First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface. United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.3c00323
Jardine, Malcolm J. A., Dardzinski, Derek, Yu, Maituo, Purkayastha, Amrita, Chen, An-Hsi, Chang, Yu-Hao, Engel, Aaron, Strocov, Vladimir N., Hocevar, Moïra, Palmstro̷m, Chris, Frolov, Sergey M., and Marom, Noa. Mon . "First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface". United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.3c00323.
@article{osti_1962446,
title = {First-Principles Assessment of CdTe as a Tunnel Barrier at the α-Sn/InSb Interface},
author = {Jardine, Malcolm J. A. and Dardzinski, Derek and Yu, Maituo and Purkayastha, Amrita and Chen, An-Hsi and Chang, Yu-Hao and Engel, Aaron and Strocov, Vladimir N. and Hocevar, Moïra and Palmstro̷m, Chris and Frolov, Sergey M. and Marom, Noa},
abstractNote = {Majorana zero modes, with prospective applications in topological quantum computing, are expected to arise in superconductor/ semiconductor interfaces, such as β-Sn and InSb. However, proximity to the superconductor may also adversely affect the semiconductor’s local properties. A tunnel barrier inserted at the interface could resolve this issue. We assess the wide band gap semiconductor, CdTe, as a candidate material to mediate the coupling at the lattice-matched interface between α-Sn and InSb. To this end, we use density functional theory (DFT) with Hubbard U corrections, whose values are machine-learned via Bayesian optimization (BO) [npj Computational Materials 2020, 6, 180]. The results of DFT+U(BO) are validated against angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) experiments for α-Sn and CdTe. For CdTe, the z-unfolding method [Advanced Quantum Technologies 2022, 5, 2100033] is used to resolve the contributions of different kz values to the ARPES. We then study the band offsets and the penetration depth of metal-induced gap states (MIGS) in bilayer interfaces of InSb/α-Sn, InSb/CdTe, and CdTe/α-Sn, as well as in trilayer interfaces of InSb/CdTe/α-Sn with increasing thickness of CdTe. We find that 16 atomic layers (3.5 nm) of CdTe can serve as a tunnel barrier, effectively shielding the InSb from MIGS from the α-Sn. This may guide the choice of dimensions of the CdTe barrier to mediate the coupling in semiconductor–superconductor devices in future Majorana zero modes experiments.},
doi = {10.1021/acsami.3c00323},
journal = {ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces},
number = 12,
volume = 15,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Mar 20 00:00:00 EDT 2023},
month = {Mon Mar 20 00:00:00 EDT 2023}
}

Journal Article:
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https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.3c00323

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