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Title: Topological nature of step-edge states on the surface of the topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se

Abstract

In addition to novel surface states, topological insulators can also exhibit robust gapless states at crystalline defects. Step edges constitute a class of common defects on the surface of crystals. In this work we establish the topological nature of one-dimensional (1D) bound states localized at step edges of the (001) surface of a topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se, both theoretically and experimentally. We show that the topological stability of the step-edge states arises from an emergent particle-hole symmetry of the surface low-energy physics, and demonstrate the experimental signatures of the particle-hole symmetry breaking. We also reveal the effects of an external magnetic field on the 1D bound states. Furthermore, our work suggests the possibility of similar topological step-edge modes in other topological materials with a rocksalt structure.

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [3];  [4];  [5];  [2];  [1]
  1. Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)
  2. The Ohio State Univ., Columbus, OH (United States)
  3. National Inst. of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, MD (United States)
  4. Academia Sinica, Taipei (Taiwan)
  5. National Taiwan Univ., Taipei (Taiwan)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
OSTI Identifier:
1612143
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1505660
Grant/Contract Number:  
SC0014335
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Physical Review B
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 99; Journal Issue: 15; Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; Materials Science; Physics; Density of states; Topological materials

Citation Formats

Iaia, Davide, Wang, Chang-Yan, Maximenko, Yulia, Walkup, Daniel, Sankar, R., Chou, Fangcheng, Lu, Yuan-Ming, and Madhavan, Vidya. Topological nature of step-edge states on the surface of the topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se. United States: N. p., 2019. Web. doi:10.1103/physrevb.99.155116.
Iaia, Davide, Wang, Chang-Yan, Maximenko, Yulia, Walkup, Daniel, Sankar, R., Chou, Fangcheng, Lu, Yuan-Ming, & Madhavan, Vidya. Topological nature of step-edge states on the surface of the topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.99.155116
Iaia, Davide, Wang, Chang-Yan, Maximenko, Yulia, Walkup, Daniel, Sankar, R., Chou, Fangcheng, Lu, Yuan-Ming, and Madhavan, Vidya. Mon . "Topological nature of step-edge states on the surface of the topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.99.155116. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1612143.
@article{osti_1612143,
title = {Topological nature of step-edge states on the surface of the topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se},
author = {Iaia, Davide and Wang, Chang-Yan and Maximenko, Yulia and Walkup, Daniel and Sankar, R. and Chou, Fangcheng and Lu, Yuan-Ming and Madhavan, Vidya},
abstractNote = {In addition to novel surface states, topological insulators can also exhibit robust gapless states at crystalline defects. Step edges constitute a class of common defects on the surface of crystals. In this work we establish the topological nature of one-dimensional (1D) bound states localized at step edges of the (001) surface of a topological crystalline insulator Pb0.7Sn0.3Se, both theoretically and experimentally. We show that the topological stability of the step-edge states arises from an emergent particle-hole symmetry of the surface low-energy physics, and demonstrate the experimental signatures of the particle-hole symmetry breaking. We also reveal the effects of an external magnetic field on the 1D bound states. Furthermore, our work suggests the possibility of similar topological step-edge modes in other topological materials with a rocksalt structure.},
doi = {10.1103/physrevb.99.155116},
journal = {Physical Review B},
number = 15,
volume = 99,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Apr 08 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Mon Apr 08 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}

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Cited by: 7 works
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Works referencing / citing this record:

Topological properties of multilayers and surface steps in the SnTe material class
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Proximity-induced superconductivity in a topological crystalline insulator
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Topological properties of multilayers and surface steps in the SnTe material class
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