2D Fermi Surface Research Articles

Quantum Interference between Quasi-2D Fermi Surface Sheets in UTe_{2}.

UTe_{2} is a spin-triplet superconductor candidate for which high quality samples with long mean free paths have recently become available, enabling quantum oscillation measurements to probe its Fermi surface and effective carrier masses. It has recently been reported that UTe_{2} possesses a 3D Fermi surface component [Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 036501 (2023)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.131.036501]. The distinction between 2D and 3D Fermi surface sections in triplet superconductors can have important implications regarding the topological properties of the superconductivity. Here we report the observation of oscillatory components in the magnetoconductance of UTe_{2} at high magnetic fields. We find that these oscillations are well described by quantum interference between quasiparticles traversing semiclassical trajectories spanning magnetic breakdown networks. Our observations are consistent with a quasi-2D model of this material's Fermi surface based on prior dHvA-effect measurements. Our results strongly indicate that UTe_{2}-which exhibits a multitude of complex physical phenomena-possesses a remarkably simple Fermi surface consisting exclusively of two quasi-2D cylindrical sections.

Toward 1D Transport in 3D Materials: SOC-Induced Charge-Transport Anisotropy in Sm3ZrBi5.

1D charge transport offers great insight into strongly correlated physics, such as Luttinger liquids, electronic instabilities, and superconductivity. Although 1D charge transport is observed in nanomaterials and quantum wires, examples in bulk crystalline solids remain elusive. In this work, it is demonstrated that spin-orbit coupling (SOC) can act as a mechanism to induce quasi-1D charge transport in the Ln3MPn5 (Ln = lanthanide; M = transition metal; Pn = Pnictide) family. From three example compounds, La3ZrSb5, La3ZrBi5, and Sm3ZrBi5, density functional theory calculations with SOC included show a quasi-1D Fermi surface in the bismuthide compounds, but an anisotropic 3D Fermi surface in the antimonide structure. By performing anisotropic charge transport measurements on La3ZrSb5, La3ZrBi5, and Sm3ZrBi5, it is demonstrated that SOC starkly affects their anisotropic resistivity ratios (ARR) at low temperatures, with an ARR of ≈4 in the antimonide compared to ≈9.5 and ≈22 (≈32 after magnetic ordering) in La3ZrBi5 and Sm3ZrBi5, respectively. This report demonstrates the utility of spin-orbit coupling to induce quasi-low-dimensional Fermi surfaces in anisotropic crystal structures, and provides a template for examining othersystems.

Superconductivity in a Layered Cobalt Oxychalcogenide Na2CoSe2O with a Triangular Lattice.

Unconventional superconductivity in bulk materials under ambient pressure is extremely rare among the 3d transition metal compounds outside the layered cuprates and iron-based family. It is predominantly linked to highly anisotropic electronic properties and quasi-two-dimensional (2D) Fermi surfaces. To date, the only known example of a Co-based exotic superconductor is the hydrated layered cobaltate, NaxCoO2·yH2O, and its superconductivity is realized in the vicinity of a spin-1/2 Mott state. However, the nature of the superconductivity in these materials is still a subject of intense debate, and therefore, finding a new class of superconductors will help unravel the mysteries of their unconventional superconductivity. Here, we report the discovery of superconductivity at ∼6.3 K in our newly synthesized layered compound Na2CoSe2O, in which the edge-shared CoSe6 octahedra form [CoSe2] layers with a perfect triangular lattice of Co ions. It is the first 3d transition metal oxychalcogenide superconductor with distinct structural and chemical characteristics. Despite its relatively low TC, this material exhibits very high superconducting upper critical fields, μ0HC2(0), which far exceeds the Pauli paramagnetic limit by a factor of 3-4. First-principles calculations show that Na2CoSe2O is a rare example of a negative charge transfer superconductor. This cobalt oxychalcogenide with a geometrical frustration among Co spins shows great potential as a highly appealing candidate for the realization of unconventional and/or high-TC superconductivity beyond the well-established Cu- and Fe-based superconductor families and opens a new field in the physics and chemistry of low-dimensional superconductors.

Quasi-2D Fermi surface in the anomalous superconductor UTe2

The heavy fermion paramagnet UTe2 exhibits numerous characteristics of spin-triplet superconductivity. Efforts to understand the microscopic details of this exotic superconductivity have been impeded by uncertainty regarding the underlying electronic structure. Here we directly probe the Fermi surface of UTe2 by measuring magnetic quantum oscillations in pristine quality crystals. We find an angular profile of quantum oscillatory frequency and amplitude that is characteristic of a quasi-2D Fermi surface, which we find is well described by two cylindrical Fermi sheets of electron- and hole-type respectively. Additionally, we find that both cylindrical Fermi sheets possess considerable undulation but negligible small-scale corrugation, which may allow for their near-nesting and therefore promote magnetic fluctuations that enhance the triplet pairing mechanism. Importantly, we find no evidence for the presence of any 3D Fermi surface sections. Our results place strong constraints on the possible symmetry of the superconducting order parameter in UTe2.

Soft X-ray Fermi surface tomography of palladium and rhodium via momentum microscopy

Fermi surfaces of transition metals, which describe all thermodynamical and transport quantities of solids, often fail to be modeled by one-electron mean-field theory due to strong correlations among the valence electrons. In addition, relativistic spin–orbit coupling pronounced in heavier elements lifts the degeneracy of the energy bands and further modifies the Fermi surface. Palladium and rhodium, two 4d metals attributed to show significant spin–orbit coupling and electron correlations, are ideal for a systematic and fundamental study of the two fundamental physical phenomena and their interplay in the electronic structure. In this study, we explored the Fermi surface of the 4d noble metals palladium and rhodium obtained via high-resolution constant initial state momentum microscopy. The complete 3D-Fermi surfaces of palladium and rhodium were tomographically mapped using soft X-ray photon energies from 34 eV up to 660 eV. To fully capture the orbital angular momentum of states across the Fermi surface, the Fermi surface tomography was performed using p- and s- polarized light. Applicability and limitations of the nearly-free electron final state model in photoemission are discussed using a complex band structure model supported by experimental evidence. The significance of spin–orbit coupling and electron correlations across the Fermi surfaces will be discussed within the context of the photoemission results. State-of-the-art fully relativistic Korringa–Kohn–Rostoker (KKR) calculations within the one-step model of photoemission are used to support the experimental results.

Revealing a 3D Fermi Surface Pocket and Electron-Hole Tunneling in UTe_{2} with Quantum Oscillations.

Spin triplet superconductor UTe_{2} is widely believed to host a quasi-two-dimensional Fermi surface, revealed by first-principles calculations, photoemission, and quantum oscillation measurements. An outstanding question still remains as to the existence of a three-dimensional Fermi surface pocket, which is crucial for our understanding of the exotic superconducting and topological properties of UTe_{2}. This 3D Fermi surface pocket appears in various theoretical models with different physics origins, but has not been unambiguously detected in experiment. Here for the first time we provide concrete evidence for a relatively isotropic, small Fermi surface pocket of UTe_{2} via quantum oscillation measurements. In addition, we observed high frequency quantum oscillations corresponding to electron-hole tunneling between adjacent electron and hole pockets. The coexistence of 2D and 3D Fermi surface pockets, as well as the breakdown orbits, provide a test bed for theoretical models and aid the realization of a unified understanding of the superconducting state of UTe_{2} from the first-principles approach.

Method to Reveal and Investigate Almost 2D Fermi Surfaces in Layered Conductors: Universal Resistivity in a Parallel Magnetic Field

We suggested an original method to investigate the Fermi surfaces (FSs) in the quasi-two-dimensional conductors some time ago [A.G. Lebed and N.N. Bagmet, Phys. Rev. B 55, R8654 (1997)]. It was based on a consideration of a perpendicular conductivity in quasi-two-dimensional metals in parallel magnetic fields in the framework of the Boltzmann kinetic equation, where it was shown that the conductivity was independent on impurities. In this paper, we demonstrate that the above mentioned result is much more general than the kinetic equation and can be obtained even in a fully quantum mechanical case. We suggest to investigate this possible phenomenon in the quasi-two-dimensional organic, high-{{T}_{c}}, and some others superconductors in a metallic phase to judge if the Fermi liquid picture is valid for them or not. If the Fermi liquid picture is valid, then study of the perpendicular resistivity in the rotated parallel magnetic field allows to extract important information about the two-dimensional Fermi surfaces.

Collinear scattering and long-lived excitations in two-dimensional electron fluids

For a long time, it has been thought that 2D Fermi gases could support long-lived excitations, thanks to the collinear quasiparticle scattering controlled by phase space constraints at a 2D Fermi surface. We present a direct calculation that reveals such excitations. The excitation lifetimes are found to exceed the fundamental bound set by Landau Fermi-liquid theory by a factor as large as $(T_F/T)^\alpha$ with $\alpha \approx 2$. These excitations represent Fermi-surface modulations of an odd parity, one per each odd angular momentum. To explain this surprising behavior, we employ a connection between the linearized quantum kinetic equation and the dynamics of a fictitious quantum particle moving in a 1D reflectionless ${\rm sech^2}$ potential. In this framework, we identify the long-lived excitations in Fermi gases as zero modes that arise from supersymmetry.

Magnetotransport properties and Fermi surface topology of the nodal line semimetal InBi

In the present study, we have thoroughly characterized the 3D Fermi surface of a topological nodal line semimetal InBi via the Shubnikov--de Haas oscillations and density functional theory. The nitty-gritty of its full 3D Fermi surface has been discussed in detail. The Fermi surface topology and the Hall conductivity emphasized the carrier compensation as a driving force for the observed extremely high magnetoresistance. The magnetotransport revealed a unique magnetic-field-induced metal-semiconducting transition. The origin of such a phenomenon has been elaborated theoretically which has implications for layered topological nodal line semimetals with linearly dispersing bands.

Kinetic theory of the nonlocal electrodynamic response in anisotropic metals: Skin effect in 2D systems

The electrodynamic response of ultrapure materials at low temperatures becomes spatially nonlocal. This nonlocality gives rise to phenomena such as hydrodynamic flow in transport and the anomalous skin effect in optics. In systems characterized by an anisotropic electronic dispersion, the nonlocal dynamics becomes dependent on the relative orientation of the sample with respect to the applied field, in ways that go beyond the usual, homogeneous response. Such orientational dependence should manifest itself not only in transport experiments, as recently observed, but also in optical spectroscopy. In this paper, we develop a kinetic theory for the distribution function and the transverse conductivity of two- and three-dimensional Fermi systems with anisotropic electronic dispersion. By expanding the collision integral into the eigenbasis of a collision operator, we include momentum-relaxing scattering as well as momentum-conserving collisions. We examine the isotropic 2D case as a reference, as well as anisotropic hexagonal and square Fermi-surface shapes. We apply our theory to the quantitative calculation of the skin depth and the surface impedance, in all regimes of skin effect. We find qualitative differences between the frequency dependence of the impedance in isotropic and anisotropic systems. Such differences are shown to persist even for more complex 2D Fermi surfaces, including the ``supercircle'' geometry and an experimental parametrization for ${\mathrm{PdCoO}}_{2}$, which deviate from an ideal polygonal shape. We study the orientational dependence of skin effect due to Fermi-surface anisotropy, thus providing guidance for the experimental study of nonlocal optical effects.

Insight into the electronic structure of the centrosymmetric skyrmion magnet GdRu2Si2.

The discovery of a square magnetic-skyrmion lattice in GdRu2Si2, with the smallest so far found skyrmion size and without a geometrically frustrated lattice, has attracted significant attention. In this work, we present a comprehensive study of surface and bulk electronic structures of GdRu2Si2 by utilizing momentum-resolved photoemission (ARPES) measurements and first-principles calculations. We show how the electronic structure evolves during the antiferromagnetic transition when a peculiar helical order of 4f magnetic moments within the Gd layers sets in. A nice agreement of the ARPES-derived electronic structure with the calculated one has allowed us to characterize the features of the Fermi surface (FS), unveil the nested region along kz at the corner of the 3D FS, and reveal their orbital compositions. Our findings suggest that the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interaction plays a decisive role in stabilizing the spiral-like order of Gd 4f moments responsible for the skyrmion physics in GdRu2Si2. Our results provide a deeper understanding of electronic and magnetic properties of this material, which is crucial for predicting and developing novel skyrmion-based systems.

Tensor Networks Can Resolve Fermi Surfaces.

We demonstrate that projected entangled-pair states are able to represent ground states of critical, fermionic systems exhibiting both 1d and 0d Fermi surfaces on a 2D lattice with an efficient scaling of the bond dimension. Extrapolating finite size results for the Gaussian restriction of fermionic projected entangled-pair states to the thermodynamic limit, the energy precision as a function of the bond dimension is found to improve as a power law, illustrating that an arbitrary precision can be obtained by increasing the bond dimension in a controlled manner. In this process, boundary conditions and system sizes have to be chosen carefully so that nonanalyticities of the Ansatz, rooted in its nontrivial topology, are avoided.

Hidden dualities in 1D quasiperiodic lattice models

We find that quasiperiodicity-induced transitions between extended and localized phases in generic 1D systems are associated with hidden dualities that generalize the well-known duality of the Aubry-André model. These spectral and eigenstate dualities are locally defined near the transition and can, in many cases, be explicitly constructed by considering relatively small commensurate approximants. The construction relies on auxiliary 2D Fermi surfaces obtained as functions of the phase-twisting boundary conditions and of the phase-shifting real-space structure. We show that, around the critical point of the limiting quasiperiodic system, the auxiliary Fermi surface of a high-enough-order approximant converges to a universal form. This allows us to devise a highly-accurate method to obtain mobility edges and duality transformations for generic 1D quasiperiodic systems through their commensurate approximants. To illustrate the power of this approach, we consider several previously studied systems, including generalized Aubry-André models and coupled Moiré chains. Our findings bring a new perspective to examine quasiperiodicity-induced extended-to-localized transitions in 1D, provide a working criterion for the appearance of mobility edges, and an explicit way to understand the properties of eigenstates close to and at the transition.

Transport evidence of the spin-polarized topological surface states of α-Sn grown on CdTe by molecular beam epitaxy

It is necessary but challenging to verify topological surface states of α-Sn by electrical transport. In this work, we demonstrate conclusive transport evidence on topological properties of an α-Sn film grown on a CdTe substrate by molecular beam epitaxy. A Berry phase determined from Shubnikov–de Haas oscillations is 0.98π. A two-dimensional (2D) Fermi surface is clearly demonstrated by angle-dependent oscillations. We believe the nontrivial topology originates from the 2D Dirac fermions of the topological surface states. In addition, both anisotropic magneto-resistance and planar Hall effect have negative amplitudes at higher fields, which we attribute to the spin-flip backscattering in the topological surface states. We also show that these topological surface states have a long relaxation time of ∼95 fs, making α-Sn a potential candidate for high-efficiency spintronics.

Multispectral time-resolved energy-momentum microscopy using high-harmonic extreme ultraviolet radiation.

A 790-nm-driven high-harmonic generation source with a repetition rate of 6kHz is combined with a toroidal-grating monochromator and a high-detection-efficiency photoelectron time-of-flight momentum microscope to enable time- and momentum-resolved photoemission spectroscopy over a spectral range of 23.6-45.5eV with sub-100fs time resolution. Three-dimensional (3D) Fermi surface mapping is demonstrated on graphene-covered Ir(111) with energy and momentum resolutions of ≲100 meV and ≲0.1 Å-1, respectively. The tabletop experiment sets the stage for measuring the kz-dependent ultrafast dynamics of 3D electronic structure, including band structure, Fermi surface, and carrier dynamics in 3D materials as well as 3D orbital dynamics in molecular layers.

Fermi surface tomography

Fermi surfaces are essential for predicting, characterizing and controlling the properties of crystalline metals and semiconductors. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) is the only technique directly probing the Fermi surface by measuring the Fermi momenta (kF) from energy- and angular distribution of photoelectrons dislodged by monochromatic light. Existing apparatus is able to determine a number of kF -vectors simultaneously, but direct high-resolution 3D Fermi surface mapping remains problematic. As a result, no such datasets exist, strongly limiting our knowledge about the Fermi surfaces. Here we show that using a simpler instrumentation it is possible to perform 3D-mapping within a very short time interval and with very high resolution. We present the first detailed experimental 3D Fermi surface as well as other experimental results featuring advantages of our technique. In combination with various light sources our methodology and instrumentation offer new opportunities for high-resolution ARPES in the physical and life sciences.

Interaction between interface and massive states in multivalley topological heterostructures

Topological interface states (TISs) in multivalley systems are studied to unravel their valley sensitivity. For this purpose, multivalley IV--VI topological crystalline insulator (TCI) heterostructures are explored using magnetooptical Landau level spectroscopy up to 34 teslas. We characterize the TISs emerging from the distinct $L$ valleys in ${\mathrm{Pb}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Sn}}_{x}\mathrm{Se}$ multiquantum wells grown along the [111] direction. It is shown that the shape of the two-dimensional (2D) Fermi surfaces of TISs residing at the TCI-trivial insulator interfaces are strongly affected by the valley anisotropy of topologically trivial ${\mathrm{Pb}}_{1\ensuremath{-}y}{\mathrm{Eu}}_{y}\mathrm{Se}$ barriers. This phenomenon is shown to be due to the deep penetration of the TISs into the barriers. For the valleys tilted with respect to the confinement direction, a significant interaction between topological states and the conventional massive quantum well states is observed, evidenced by the resulting large anticrossings between Landau levels. These are theoretically well described by a $\mathbf{k}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\mathbf{p}$ model that considers tilt and anisotropy of the valleys in 2D. Therefore, in this paper, we provide a precise characterization of the TIS valley splitting as well as an accurate determination of the anisotropy of their Dirac cone dispersion.

Quasi-quantized Hall response in bulk InAs

The quasi-quantized Hall effect (QQHE) is the three-dimensional (3D) counterpart of the integer quantum Hall effect (QHE), exhibited only by two-dimensional (2D) electron systems. It has recently been observed in layered materials, consisting of stacks of weakly coupled 2D platelets that are yet characterized by a 3D anisotropic Fermi surface. However, it is predicted that the quasi-quantized 3D version of the 2D QHE should occur in a much broader class of bulk materials, regardless of the underlying crystal structure. Here, we compare the observation of quasi-quantized plateau-like features in the Hall conductivity of the n-type bulk semiconductor InAs with the predictions for the 3D QQHE in presence of parabolic electron bands. InAs takes form of a cubic crystal without any low-dimensional substructure. The onset of the plateau-like feature in the Hall conductivity scales with sqrt{2/3}k_{text {F}}^{z}/pi in units of the conductance quantum and is accompanied by a Shubnikov–de Haas minimum in the longitudinal resistivity, consistent wit the results of calculations. This confirms the suggestion that the 3D QQHE may be a generic effect directly observable in materials with small Fermi surfaces, placed in sufficiently strong magnetic fields.

Nontrivial Fermi surface topology of the kagome superconductor CsV3Sb5 probed by de Haas–van Alphen oscillations

We have investigated the normal state Fermi-surface properties of the kagome superconductor ${\mathrm{CsV}}_{3}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{5}$ using torque magnetometry with applied fields ($H$) up to 35 T. The torque signal shows clear de Haas--van Alphen (dHvA) oscillations above 15 T. The oscillations are smooth and consist of seven distinct frequencies with values from $\ensuremath{\sim}$ 18 T to 2135 T. The presence of higher frequencies in ${\mathrm{CsV}}_{3}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{5}$ is further confirmed by carrying out additional measurements using the tunnel diode oscillator technique. All frequencies measured at different tilt angles ($\ensuremath{\theta}$) of the field direction with respect to the c axis show a $1/\mathrm{cos}\ensuremath{\theta}$ dependence, implying that the Fermi surfaces corresponding to these frequencies are two dimensional (2D). The absence of dHvA oscillations at $\ensuremath{\theta}$ = ${90}^{o}$ further supports the presence of 2D Fermi surfaces. The Berry phase ($\ensuremath{\phi}$) determined from the Landau level fan diagram for all frequencies is $\ensuremath{\sim}$ 0.4. This value is close to the theoretical value of $\ensuremath{\phi}$ = 0.5 for a nontrivial system, which strongly supports the nontrivial topology of the Fermi surfaces of these frequencies. Several quantities characterizing the Fermi surface are calculated employing the Lifshitz-Kosevich theory. These findings are crucial for exploring the interplay between nontrivial band topology, charge-density wave, and unconventional superconductivity of ${\mathrm{CsV}}_{3}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{5}$.

Physical properties of YbFe5P3 with a quasi-one-dimensional crystal structure

We report basic physical properties of the quasi-one-dimensional heavy-fermion compound $\mathrm{Yb}{\mathrm{Fe}}_{5}{\mathrm{P}}_{3}$. Its magnetic susceptibility follows a modified Curie-Weiss behavior at high temperatures with a Weiss temperature between $\ensuremath{-}5$ and $\ensuremath{-}21$ K depending on the direction of the applied magnetic field. Our single crystals of $\mathrm{Yb}{\mathrm{Fe}}_{5}{\mathrm{P}}_{3}$ are good metals with a room-temperature resistivity of $\ensuremath{\sim}140$ $\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Omega}}$ cm and a residual resistivity of less than 2 $\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Omega}}$ cm. Below $\ensuremath{\sim}2$ K the resistivity reflects the presence of strong quantum fluctuations, which is supported by specific heat measurements that show a similar strong enhancement in $C/T$ at low temperatures reaching 1.5 J/mol ${\mathrm{K}}^{2}$ below $T=0.5$ K. No magnetic ordering is observed down to 80 mK. Magnetic fields up to 8 T rapidly suppress the magnetic fluctuations, while resistivity measurements under pressures up to 2.54 GPa indicate the enhancement of quantum fluctuations, although still no order is observed down to 0.3 K. Density functional theory calculations suggest the presence of electronically quasi-one-dimensional (1D) Fermi surface sheets together with three-dimensional electronic pockets. We suggest that the quasi-1D nature of this compound leads to an extended regime of large quantum fluctuations within the paramagnetic state prior to reaching a magnetic instability.