Time-reversal Invariant Topological Superconductors Research Articles

Edge states of two-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductors with strong interactions and disorder: A view from the lattice

Edge states of two-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductors with strong interactions and disorder: A view from the lattice

Detrimental effects of disorder in two-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductors

The robustness against local perturbations, as long as the symmetry of the system is preserved, is a distinctive feature of topological quantum states. Magnetic impurities and defects break time-reversal invariance and, consequently, time-reversal invariant (TRI) topological superconductors are fragile against this type of disorder. Non-magnetic impurities, however, preserve time-reversal symmetry and one naively expects a TRI topological superconductor to persist in the presence of non-magnetic impurities. In this work, we study the effect of non-magnetic disorder on a TRI topological superconductor with extended $s$-wave pairing, which can be engineered at the interface of an Fe-based superconductor and a strongly spin-orbit coupled Rashba layer. We model two different types of non-magnetic random disorder and analyze both the bulk density of states and edge state spectrum. Contrary to naive expectations, we find that the disorder strongly affects the topological phase by closing the energy gap, while trivial superconducting phases remain stable and fully gapped. The disorder phase diagram reveals a strong expansion of a nodal phase with increasing disorder. We further show the decay of the helical Majorana edge states in the topological phase and how they eventually disappear with increasing disorder. These results alter our understanding of effects of impurities and disorder on TRI topological phases and may help explain the difficulty of experimental observation of TRI topological superconductors.

Quantum Computing with Majorana Kramers Pairs

We propose a universal gate set acting on a qubit formed by the degenerate ground states of a Coulomb-blockaded time-reversal invariant topological superconductor island with spatially separated Majorana Kramers pairs: the "Majorana Kramers qubit." All gate operations are implemented by coupling the Majorana Kramers pairs to conventional superconducting leads. Interestingly, in such an all-superconducting device, the energy gap of the leads provides another layer of protection from quasiparticle poisoning independent of the island charging energy. Moreover, the absence of strong magnetic fields-which typically reduce the superconducting gap size of the island-suggests a unique robustness of our qubit to quasiparticle poisoning due to thermal excitations. Consequently, the Majorana Kramers qubit should benefit from prolonged coherence times and may provide an alternative route to a Majorana-based quantum computer.

Josephson junctions of two-dimensional time-reversal invariant superconductors: Signatures of the topological phase

We determine the current-phase relation (CPR) of two-terminal configurations of Josephson junctions containing two-dimensional (2D) time-reversal invariant topological superconductors (TRITOPS), including TRITOPS-TRITOPS, as well as junctions between topological and non-topological superconductors (TRITOPS-S). We focus on long junctions for which several channels intervene in the tunneling coupling through the junction. We present a description of the topological edge modes for different TRITOPS models including $p$-wave pairing and the combination of $s$-wave pairing with spin-orbit coupling. We derive effective low-energy Hamiltonians to describe the Josephson junction, which can be solved analytically to explain the contribution of the edge states to the Josephson current as a function of the phase bias. We find that edge-modes yield singular corrections to the CPR for both junction types. The primary effects occur for the response of the Majorana zero-modes at half-flux quantum phase $\phi\approx \pi$ in TRITOPS-TRITOPS junctions and for integer flux quantum phase $\phi \approx 0$ for TRITOPS-S junctions, respectively. The former effect is particularly strong two-component nematic superconductors. The latter effect leads to a spontaneously broken time-reversal symmetry in the TRITOPS-S junction and to a breakdown of the bulk-boundary correspondence.

Manipulation of Majorana-Kramers qubit and its tolerance in time-reversal invariant topological superconductor

We investigate non-Abelian statistics of Majorana-Kramers pairs (MKPs) in a network system of one-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductors by using numerical simulations of braiding dynamics and examine the tolerance against various perturbations which may cause decoherence of MKPs. We, first, consider effects of a magnetic field which breaks time-reversal symmetry. In contrast to a naive expectation, the non-Abelian braiding of MKPs is robust against applied magnetic fields provided that the initial and final states of a braiding process are invariant under the combination of a time reversal and a mirror reflection, even when intermediate states break the combined symmetry. Second, we investigate the stability of non-Abelian braidings in the case with gate-induced inhomogeneous potentials at junctions between superconducting nanowires, which generally generate a non-Majorana nearly zero-energy Andreeev bound state at the junctions. It is found that the non-Majorana nearly zero-energy states interfere with MKPs, resulting in the failure of non-Abelian braidings, when the length scale of the inhomogeneous potentials is comparable to the coherence length of the superconductors.

Surface Bogoliubov-Dirac cones and helical Majorana hinge modes in superconducting Dirac semimetals

In the presence of certain symmetries, three-dimensional Dirac semimetals can harbor not only surface Fermi arcs, but also surface Dirac cones. Motivated by the experimental observation of rotation-symmetry-protected Dirac semimetal states in iron-based superconductors, we investigate the potential intrinsic topological phases in a $C_{4z}$-rotational invariant superconducting Dirac semimetal with $s_{\pm}$-wave pairing. When the normal state harbors only surface Fermi arcs on the side surfaces, we find that an interesting gapped superconducting state with a quartet of Bogoliubov-Dirac cones on each side surface can be realized, even though the first-order topology of its bulk is trivial. When the normal state simultaneously harbors surface Fermi arcs and surface Dirac cones, we find that a second-order time-reversal invariant topological superconductor with helical Majorana hinge states can be realized. The criteria for these two distinct topological phases have a simple geometric interpretation in terms of three characteristic surfaces in momentum space. By reducing the bulk material to a thin film normal to the axis of rotation symmetry, we further find that a two-dimensional first-order time-reversal invariant topological superconductor can be realized if the inversion symmetry is broken by applying a gate voltage. Our work reveals that diverse topological superconducting phases and types of Majorana modes can be realized in superconducting Dirac semimetals.

Topological quantum criticality in superfluids and superconductors: Surface criticality, thermal properties, and Lifshitz Majorana fields

Time reversal invariant (TRI) topological superfluids (TSFs) and topological superconductors (TSCs) are robust symmetry protected gapped topological states. In this article, we study the evolution of these topological states in the presence of time reversal symmetry breaking (TRB) fields and/or sufficiently large TRI fields. Physically, one of the realizations of TRB fields can be internal spin exchange fields due to background magnetic ordering. We find that the fully gapped TSFs and TSCs are generically separated from other nodal states by various zero temperature quantum critical points that are characterized by generalized quantum Lifshitz fields with distinct scaling properties. These emergent Lifshitz fields also define finite temperature properties in quantum critical regimes. Moreover, for a certain subset of TRB fields, there exist a precursor to bulk transitions, where surface states can also exhibit quantum critical behavior near zero fields. The possibility for a fully gapped TSF/TSC to smoothly crossover into a topologically trivial state without a phase transition is also examined.

Three-dimensional time reversal invariant topological superconductivity in doped chiral topological semimetals

Chiral topological semimetals host multifold degenerate band crossing points under the protection of crystalline symmetries. In this paper, we suggest that the recently discovered chiral topological semimetals in space group 198, parts of which are superconducting upon doping, can be new candidates of time reversal invariant topological superconductors. By investigating the Fermi surfaces around the band crossing points that carry nonzero Chern numbers, we clarify how the nontrivial topology of chiral topological semimetals affects their superconducting state and show the existence of topological superconductivity in $s_\pm$-wave pairing with surface Majorana fermions. We further demonstrate that the topological superconductivity is favored by the inter-unit-cell phonon-mediated electron-electron interaction.

Boundary topological superconductors

For strongly anisotropic time-reversal invariant (TRI) insulators in two and three dimensions, the band inversion can occur respectively at all TRI momenta of a high symmetry axis and plane. Although these classes of materials are topologically trivial as the strong and weak $Z_{2}$ indices are all trivial, they can host an even number of unprotected helical gapless edge states or surface Dirac cones on some boundaries. We show in this work that when the gapless boundary states are gapped by $s_{\pm}$-wave superconductivity, a boundary time-reversal invariant topological superconductor (BTRITSC) characterized by a $Z_{2}$ invariant can be realized on the corresponding boundary. Since the dimension of the BTRITSC is lower than the bulk by one, the whole system is a second-order TRI topological superconductor. When the boundary of the BTRITSC is further cut open, Majorana Kramers pairs and helical gapless Majorana modes will respectively appear at the corners and hinges of the considered sample in two and three dimensions. Furthermore, a magnetic field can gap the helical Majorana hinge modes of the three-dimensional second-order TRI topological superconductor and lead to the realization of a third-order topological superconductor with Majorana corner modes. Our proposal can potentially be realized in insulator-superconductor heterostructures and iron-based superconductors whose normal states take the desired inverted band structures.

Fragility of the Fractional Josephson Effect in Time-Reversal-Invariant Topological Superconductors.

Time-reversal-invariant topological superconductor (TRITOPS) wires host Majorana Kramers pairs that have been predicted to mediate a fractional Josephson effect with 4π periodicity in the superconducting phase difference. We explore the TRITOPS fractional Josephson effect in the presence of time-dependent "local mixing" perturbations that instantaneously preserve time-reversal symmetry. Specifically, we show that just as such couplings render braiding of Majorana Kramers pairs nonuniversal, the Josephson current becomes either aperiodic or 2π periodic (depending on conditions that we quantify) unless the phase difference is swept sufficiently quickly. We further analyze topological superconductors with T^{2}=+1 time-reversal symmetry and reveal a rich interplay between interactions and local mixing that can be experimentally probed in nanowire arrays.

Stanene: A good platform for topological insulator and topological superconductor

Two dimensional (2D) topological insulators (TIs) and topological superconductors (TSCs) have been intensively studied for recent years due to its great potential for dissipationless electron transportation and fault-tolerant quantum computing, respectively. Here we focus on stanene, the tin analogue of graphene, to give a brief review of its development as a candidate for both 2D TI and TSC. Stanene is proposed to be a TI with a large gap of 0.3 eV, and its topological properties are sensitive to various factors, e.g., the lattice constants, chemical functionalization and layer thickness, which offer various methods for phase tunning. Experimentally, the inverted gap and edge states are observed recently, which are strong evidence for TI. In addition, stanene is also predicted to be a time reversal invariant TSC by breaking inversion symmetry, supporting helical Majorana edge modes. The layer-dependent superconductivity of stanene is recently confirmed by both transport and scanning tunneling microscopy measurements. This review gives a detailed introduction to stanene and its topological properties and some prospects are also discussed.

Topological superconducting phases and Josephson effect in curved superconductors with time reversal invariance

We consider a Rashba spin-orbit coupled nanowire with anisotropic spin-singlet superconducting pairing and time-reversal-invariant symmetry. We explore the evolution of the topological superconducting phases of this system due to geometric deformations for the representative case of a wire bent in a semielliptical shape. We find that when the system is in its topological superconducting phase, strong inhomogeneities in the profile curvature can produce a pair of localized eigenmodes, which can be attributed to a nonuniform topological phase. The curved geometric profile also allows to tune the spin correlations of the superconducting state via the induced inhomogeneity of the spin-orbit coupling (SOC). The geometric control of the superconducting pair correlations allows to manipulate the critical current in Josephson junctions made up of two time reversal invariant topological superconductors separated by a spin-orbit coupled normal metal. In particular, we find that the curvature inhomogeneity can be exploited for amplifying the current intensity, but also to generate a $0-\pi$ transition, and a second harmonic contribution, which generates, for some specific geometric configurations, a $\varphi$-junction behavior.

Biaxially Anisotropic Magnetic Response of Majorana Fermions

Researchers have theoretically discovered a novel magnetic response in a certain type of Kramers pair of Majorana fermions on the surface of time-reversal invariant topological superconductors (TSC...

Non-abelian statistics of Majorana modes and the applications to topological quantum computation

Since their prediction as fundamental particles in 1937, Majorana fermions have drawn lots of interests in particle physics and dark matter. Their counterparts in condensed matter physics, Majorana zero-Modes (MZMs), have attracted remarkable attention in condensed matter for their potential in building a fault-tolerant quantum computer. Due to the relentless effort, lots of important progress has been made in Majorana physics in the past two decades, as introduced in several excellent review articles. This review focuses on the non-Abelian statistics of MZMs and their application to quantum computation. In the first section of this work, the theoretical progress in searching for MZM is briefly reviewed and the latest experimental progresses are summarized. We next introduce the basic concepts of non-Abelian statistics of MZMs and explain how they can be applied to quantum computation. We then discuss two key experiments to implementing quantum computers in the MZM platform: MZM braiding and MZM qubit readout. In this part, several representative proposals for the Majorana braiding and MZM qubit readout are elaborated. Finally, we introduce a latest concept, the symmetry-protected non-Abelian braiding of Majorana Kramers pairs in time-reversal invariant topological superconductors.

Exact analytical solution of a time-reversal-invariant topological superconducting wire

We consider a model proposed before for a time-reversal-invariant topological superconductor (TRITOPS) which contains a hopping term $t$, a chemical potential $\mu$, an extended $s$-wave pairing $\Delta$ and spin-orbit coupling $\lambda$. We show that for $|\Delta|=|\lambda|$, $\mu=t=0$, the model can be solved exactly defining new fermion operators involving nearest-neighbor sites. The many-body ground state is four-fold degenerate due to the existence of two zero-energy modes localized exactly at the first and the last site of the chain. These four states show entanglement in the sense that creating or annihilating a zero-energy mode at the first site is proportional to a similar operation at the last site. By continuity, this property should persist for general parameters. Using these results we correct some statements related with the so called "time-reversal anomaly". Addition of a small hopping term for a chain with an even number of sites breaks the degeneracy and the ground state becomes unique with an even number of particles. We also consider a small magnetic field applied to one end of the chain. We compare the many-body excitation energies and spin projection along the spin-orbit direction for both ends of the chains with numerical results %for a small chain obtaining good agreement.

Finite-scale emergence of 2+1D supersymmetry at first-order quantum phase transition

Supersymmetry, a symmetry between fermions and bosons, provides a promising extension of the standard model but is still lack of experimental evidence. Recently, the interest in supersymmetry arises in the condensed matter community owing to its potential emergence at the continuous quantum phase transition. In this work, we demonstrate that 2+1D supersymmetry, relating massive Majorana and Ising fields, might emerge at the first-order quantum phase transition of the Ising magnetization by tuning a single parameter. Although the emergence of the SUSY is only allowed in a finite range of scales due to the existence of relevant masses, the scale range can be large when the masses before scaling are small. We show that the emergence of supersymmetry is accompanied by a topological phase transition for the Majorana field, where its non-zero mass changes the sign but keeps the magnitude. An experimental realization of this scenario is proposed using the surface state of a 3+1D time-reversal invariant topological superconductor with surface magnetic doping.

Catalog of Andreev spectra and Josephson effects in structures with time-reversal-invariant topological superconductor wires

We study all the possible different two terminal configurations of Josephson junctions containing wires of time-reversal invariant topological superconductors (TRITOPS) and ordinary superconductors, including combinations with an interacting quantum dot between both wires in the junction. We introduce simple effective Hamiltonians which explain the different qualitative behaviors obtained. We analyze a wide range of phenomena, including occurrence and quenching of the so called $0-\pi$ transition, anomalous periodicity and jumps of the Josephson current as a function of the phase difference, and finite Josephson current in the absence of magnetic flux.

Signatures of surface Majorana modes in the magnetic response of topological superconductors

We study the magnetic susceptibility of a two-dimensional cone of Majorana modes localised at the surface of a three-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductor belonging to class DIII. A field parallel to the surface tilts the surface Majorana cone along the supercurrent direction. For fields larger than a critical threshold field $H^*$, $H>H^*$, a transition from type I to type II Dirac cone occurs and a finite current carried by the Majorana modes start to flow, leading to an additional diamagnetic contribution to the surface magnetization. On a curved surface interband transitions are promoted by the Majorana spin connection that couples to the external field, giving rise to a finite frequency magnetic susceptibility.

Entangled end states with fractionalized spin projection in a time-reversal-invariant topological superconducting wire

We study the ground state and low-energy subgap excitations of a finite wire of a time-reversal-invariant topological superconductor (TRITOPS) with spin-orbit coupling. We solve the problem analytically for a long chain of a specific one-dimensional lattice model in the electron-hole symmetric configuration and numerically for other cases of the same model. We present results for the spin density of excitations in long chains with an odd number of particles. The total spin projection along the axis of the spin-orbit coupling $S_z= \pm 1/2$ is distributed with fractions $\pm 1/4$ localized at both ends, and shows even-odd alternation along the sites of the chain. We calculate the localization length of these excitations and find that it can be well approximated by a simple analytical expression. We show that the energy $E$ of the lowest subgap excitations of the finite chain defines tunneling and entanglement between end states.We discuss the effect of a Zeeman coupling $\Delta_Z$ on one of the ends of the chain only. For $\Delta_Z<E$, the energy difference of excitations with opposite spin orientation is $\Delta_Z/2$, consistent with a spin projection $\pm 1/4$. We argue that these physical features are not model dependent and can be experimentally observed in TRITOPS wires under appropriate conditions.

Controllable Majorana fermions on domain walls of a magnetic topological insulator

We propose to realize a one-dimensional chiral topological superconducting state at the magnetic domain walls stripe of a magnetic topological insulator coupled with a conventional $s$-wave superconductor. The localized Majorana zero modes can be constructed in a reconfigurable manner through magnetic domain writing by magnetic force microscopy. This proposal could be further extended to the Majorana zero modes at domain walls on superconducting spin-helical Dirac surface states, and may be applicable to the two-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological superconductor on FeTe$_{0.5}$Se$_{0.5}$ surface.