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Title: Spatial potential ripples of azimuthal surface modes in topological insulator Bi2Te3 nanowires

Journal Article · · Scientific Reports
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/srep19014· OSTI ID:1256064
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [1];  [3];  [4];  [1]
  1. IMM-Instituto de Microelectronica de Madrid (CNM-CSIC), Tres Cantos, Madrid, (Spain)
  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Materials Sciences Division; Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)
  3. Univ. of Hamburg (Germany). Inst. of Nanostructure and Solid State Physics
  4. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Materials Sciences Division

Topological insulators (TI) nanowires (NW) are an emerging class of structures, promising both novel quantum effects and potential applications in low-power electronics, thermoelectrics and spintronics. However, investigating the electronic states of TI NWs is complicated, due to their small lateral size, especially at room temperature. Here, we perform scanning probe based nanoscale imaging to resolve the local surface potential landscapes of Bi 2 Te 3 nanowires (NWs) at 300 K. We found equipotential rings around the NWs perimeter that we attribute to azimuthal 1D modes. Along the NW axis, these modes are altered, forming potential ripples in the local density of states, due to intrinsic disturbances. Potential mapping of electrically biased NWs enabled us to accurately determine their conductivity which was found to increase with the decrease of NW diameter, consistent with surface dominated transport. Our results demonstrate that TI NWs can pave the way to both exotic quantum states and novel electronic devices.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231; AC02-05CH1123
OSTI ID:
1256064
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1379030
Journal Information:
Scientific Reports, Vol. 6; ISSN 2045-2322
Publisher:
Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 14 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (2)

Pulsed current-voltage electrodeposition of stoichiometric Bi 2 Te 3 nanowires and their crystallographic characterization by transmission electron backscatter diffraction journal October 2019
Magnetotransport signatures of three-dimensional topological insulator nanostructures journal June 2018

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