Topological Insulator Heterostructures Research Articles

Cr-Containing Ferromagnetic Film–Topological Insulator Heterostructures as Promising Materials for the Quantum Anomalous Hall Effect

Two heterostructures consisting of a Bi2Se3 topological insulator substrate and a CrI3 or CrBi2Se4 ferromagnetic insulator thin film have been theoretically studied. The calculated band structure indicates that both heterostructures exhibit the quantum anomalous Hall effect with the splitting of the topological surface state of 19 and 92 meV for CrI3/Bi2Se3 and CrBi2Se4/Bi2Se3, respectively. It has been shown that the band gap is determined primarily by the degree of localization of the wavefunction of the topological state in the ferromagnetic film. This degree of localization depends on the height and width of the interface barrier between the substrate and ferromagnetic material. Both the height and width of the interface barrier in the CrBi2Se4/Bi2Se3 system are similar to the respective characteristics of the van der Waals barrier in bulk Bi2Se3.

Effect of the depletion region in topological insulator heterostructures for ambipolar field-effect transistors

Formation of a depletion region at the vertically stacked topological insulator $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}n$ heterostructures is one of the effective approaches to minimize residual carrier density in the bulk regions. Here, we report on characterization of field-effect transistor (FET) based on ${(\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{0.26}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{b}}_{0.74})}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}/\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}$ topological insulator heterostructures with a vertical $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}n$ junction configuration. The thicknesses of the top $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}{(\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{0.26}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{b}}_{0.74})}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}$ layer vary from $d=8$ to 25 nm with 3-nm constant thickness of the bottom $n\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{B}{\mathrm{i}}_{2}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{e}}_{3}$. Even at zero gate voltage, increasing thickness of the top layer inverts the dominant conducting carrier from $n$-type to $p$-type. With applying gate voltage, the effect of depletion region at the interface is clearly revealed as a voltage shift of charge neutral point in ambipolar FET operation. The systematic shift of charge neutral point in FET operation clearly indicates that the formation of depletion region can be explained with conventional semiconductor $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}n$ junction model. In the topological insulator $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}n$ heterostructures, the thickness tuning of both $p$-type and $n$-type layers is quite important to minimize the residual charge density in the whole device region. The band engineering with $p\text{\ensuremath{-}}n$ junction will be further applicable to extract the electrical properties of surface state.

Charge transfer in EuS/Bi2Se3 heterostructures as indicated by the absence of Raman scattering

Heterostructures of topological insulators and ferromagnets offer new opportunities in spintronics and a route to novel anomalous Hall states. In one such structure, EuS/Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$ a dramatic enhancement of the Curie temperature was recently observed. We performed Raman spectroscopy on a similar set of thin films to investigate the magnetic and lattice excitations. Interfacial strain was monitored through its effects on the Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$ phonon modes while the magnetic system was probed through the EuS Raman mode. Despite its appearance in bare EuS, the heterostructures lack the corresponding EuS Raman signal. Through numerical calculations we rule out the possibility of Fabry-Perot interference suppressing the mode. We attribute the absence of a magnetic signal in EuS to a large charge transfer with the Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$. This could provide an additional pathway for manipulating the magnetic, optical, or electronic response of topological heterostructures.

Bulk and interface quantum states of electrons in multi-layer heterostructures with topological materials

In this article we describe the bulk and interface quantum states of electrons in multi-layer heterostructures in one dimension, consisting of topological insulators (TIs) and topologically trivial materials. We use and extend an effective four-band continuum Hamiltonian by introducing position dependence to the eight material parameters of the Hamiltonian. We are able to demonstrate complete conduction-valence band mixing in the interface states. We find evidence for topological features of bulk states of multi-layer TI heterostructures, as well as demonstrating both complete and incomplete conduction-valence band inversion at different bulk state energies. We show that the linear kz terms in the low-energy Hamiltonian, arising from overlap of pz orbitals between different atomic layers in the case of chalcogenides, control the amount of tunneling from TIs to trivial insulators. Finally, we show that the same linear kz terms in the low-energy Hamiltonian affect the material’s ability to form the localised interface state, and we demonstrate that due to this effect the spin and probability density localisation in a thin film of Sb2Te3 is incomplete. We show that changing the parameter that controls the magnitude of the overlap of pz orbitals affects the transport characteristics of the topologically conducting states, with incomplete topological state localisation resulting in increased backscattering.

Spin-transfer torque generated in graphene based topological insulator heterostructures

We studied the spin-transfer torque (STT) in graphene based normal-metal/topological-insulator/ferromagnet heterostructures (N/TI/F), which is induced by the helical spin-polarized current in the quantum spin Hall insulator. We found that the STT is comparable in magnitude to the STT in ferromagnetic-normal- ferromagnetic graphene junction, while not requiring additional ferromagnetic layer with fixed magnetization, which makes it advantageous for the manipulation of magnetic devices in spintronics. More interestingly, the STT is very robust in our proposed nanostructure, as it is immune to changes in the geometry due to an asymmetrically notch or the presence of random nanopores in the quantum spin Hall insulator. Our theoretical prediction suggests that graphene based quantum spin Hall insulator could be used for very efficient magnetization manipulation for magnetic materials.

Electrically controllable spin filtering based on superconducting helical states

The magnetoelectric effects in the surface states of the three-dimensional (3D) topological insulator (TI) are extremely strong due to the full spin-momentum locking. Here the microscopic theory of S/3D TI bilayer structures in terms of quasiclassical Green's functions is developed. On the basis of the developed formalism it is shown that the DOS in the S/TI bilayer manifests giant magnetoelectric behavior and, as a result, S/3D TI heterostructures can work as nonmagnetic fully electrically controllable spin filters. It is shown that due to the full spin-momentum locking the amplitudes of the odd-frequency singlet and triplet components of the condensate wave function are equal. The same is valid for the even frequency singlet and triplet components. We unveil the connection between the odd-frequency pairing in S/3D TI heterostructures and magnetoelectric effects in the DOS.

Surfaces and slabs of fractional topological insulator heterostructures

Fractional topological insulators (FTI) are electronic topological phases in $(3+1)$ dimensions enriched by time reversal (TR) and charge $U(1)$ conservation symmetries. We focus on the simplest series of fermionic FTI, whose bulk quasiparticles consist of deconfined partons that carry fractional electric charges in integral units of $e^\ast=e/(2n+1)$ and couple to a discrete $\mathbb{Z}_{2n+1}$ gauge theory. We propose massive symmetry preserving or breaking FTI surface states. Combining the long-ranged entangled bulk with these topological surface states, we deduce the novel topological order of quasi-$(2+1)$ dimensional FTI slabs as well as their corresponding edge conformal field theories.

Current-Nonlinear Hall Effect and Spin-Orbit Torque Magnetization Switching in a Magnetic Topological Insulator.

The current-nonlinear Hall effect or second harmonic Hall voltage is widely used as one of the methods for estimating charge-spin conversion efficiency, which is attributed to the magnetization oscillation by spin-orbit torque (SOT). Here, we argue the second harmonic Hall voltage under a large in-plane magnetic field with an in-plane magnetization configuration in magnetic-nonmagnetic topological insulator (TI) heterostructures, Cr_{x}(Bi_{1-y}Sb_{y})_{2-x}Te_{3}/(Bi_{1-y}Sb_{y})_{2}Te_{3}, where it is clearly shown that the large second harmonic voltage is governed not by SOT but mainly by asymmetric magnon scattering without macroscopic magnetization oscillation. Thus, this method does not allow an accurate estimation of charge-spin conversion efficiency in TI. Instead, the SOT contribution is exemplified by current pulse induced nonvolatile magnetization switching, which is realized with a current density of 2.5×10^{10} A m^{-2}, showing its potential as a spintronic material.

Majorana-Hubbard model on the square lattice

We study a tight-binding model of interacting Majorana (Hermitian) modes on a square lattice. The model may have an experimental realization in a superconducting-film--topological-insulator heterostructure in a magnetic field. We find a rich phase diagram, as a function of interaction strength, including a superfluid phase with spontaneous breaking of an emergent $U(1)$ symmetry, separated by a supersymmetric transition from a gapless normal phase.

Transmission in graphene–topological insulator heterostructures

We investigate scattering of the topological surface state of a three-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological insulator when graphene is deposited on the topological-insulator surface. Specifically, we consider the (111) surface of a Bi$_2$Se$_3$-like topological insulator. We present a low-energy model for the bulk graphene-topological insulator heterostructure and we calculate the transmission probability at zigzag and armchair edges of the deposited graphene, and the conductance through graphene nanoribbon barriers and show that its features can be understood from antiresonances in the transmission probability.

Exotic surface states in hybrid structures of topological insulators and Weyl semimetals

Topological insulators (TIs) and Weyl semimetals (WSMs) are two realizations of topological matter usually appearing separately in nature. However, they are directly related to each other via a topological phase transition. In this paper, we investigate the question whether these two topological phases can exist together at the same time, with a combined, hybrid surface state at the joint boundaries. We analyze effective models of a 3D TI and an inversion symmetric WSM and couple them in a way that certain symmetries, like inversion, are preserved. A tunnel coupling approach enables us to obtain the hybrid surface state Hamiltonian analytically. This offers the possibility of a detailed study of its dispersion relation depending on the investigated couplings. For spin-symmetric coupling, we find that two Dirac nodes can emerge out of the combination of a single Dirac node and a Fermi arc. For spin-asymmetric coupling, the dispersion relation is gapped and the former Dirac node gets spin-polarized. We propose different experimental realization of the hybrid system, including compressively strained HgTe as well as heterostructures of TI and WSM materials.

Spin-orbit torque-driven magnetization switching in 2D-topological insulator heterostructure

Charge pumping and spin-orbit torque (SOT) are two reciprocal phenomena widely studied in ferromagnet (FM)/topological insulator (TI) heterostructures. However, the SOT and its corresponding switching phase diagram for a FM island in proximity to a two-dimensional topological insulator (2DTI) has not been explored yet. We have addressed these features, using the recently developed adiabatic expansion of time-dependent nonequilibrium Green's function (NEGF) in the presence of both precessing magnetization and bias voltage. We have calculated the angular and spatial dependence of different components of the SOT on the FM island. We determined the switching phase diagram of the FM for different orientations of the easy axis. The results can be used as a guideline for the future experiments on such systems.

Topological Insulator Film Growth by Molecular Beam Epitaxy: A Review

In this article, we will review recent progress in the growth of topological insulator (TI) thin films by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The materials we focus on are the V2-VI3 family of TIs. These materials are ideally bulk insulating with surface states housing Dirac excitations which are spin-momentum locked. These surface states are interesting for fundamental physics studies (such as the search for Majorana fermions) as well as applications in spintronics and other fields. However, the majority of TI films and bulk crystals exhibit significant bulk conductivity, which obscures these states. In addition, many TI films have a high defect density. This review will discuss progress in reducing the bulk conductivity while increasing the crystal quality. We will describe in detail how growth parameters, substrate choice, and growth technique influence the resulting TI film properties for binary and ternary TIs. We then give an overview of progress in the growth of TI heterostructures. We close by discussing the bright future for TI film growth by MBE.

Pure spin current devices based on ferromagnetic topological insulators.

Two-dimensional topological insulators possess two counter propagating edge channels with opposite spin direction. Recent experimental progress allowed to create ferromagnetic topological insulators realizing a quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) state. In the QAH state one of the two edge channels disappears due to the strong ferromagnetic exchange field. We investigate heterostructures of topological insulators and ferromagnetic topological insulators by means of numerical transport calculations. We show that spin current flow in such heterostructures can be controlled with high fidelity. Specifically, we propose spintronic devices that are capable of creating, switching and detecting pure spin currents using the same technology. In these devices electrical currents are directly converted into spin currents, allowing a high conversion efficiency. Energy independent transport properties in combination with large bulk gaps in some topological insulator materials may allow operation even at room temperature.

Large Unidirectional Magnetoresistance in a Magnetic Topological Insulator.

We report current-direction dependent or unidirectional magnetoresistance (UMR) in magnetic or nonmagnetic topological insulator (TI) heterostructures, Cr_{x}(Bi_{1-y}Sb_{y})_{2-x}Te_{3}/(Bi_{1-y}Sb_{y})_{2}Te_{3}, that is several orders of magnitude larger than in other reported systems. From the magnetic field and temperature dependence, the UMR is identified to originate from the asymmetric scattering of electrons by magnons. In particular, the large magnitude of UMR is an outcome of spin-momentum locking and a small Fermi wave number at the surface of TI. In fact, the UMR is maximized around the Dirac point with the minimal Fermi wave number.

Heavily Cr-doped (Bi,Sb)2Te3 as a ferromagnetic insulator with electrically tunable conductivity

With molecular beam epitaxy we have grown Cry(BixSb1-x)2-yTe3 thin films with homogeneous distribution of Cr dopants and Curie temperature up to 77 K. The films with Cr concentration y ≥ 0.39 are found to be topologically trivial, highly insulating ferromagnets, whose conductivity can be tuned over two orders of magnitude by gate voltage. The ferromagnetic insulators with electrically tunable conductivity can be used to realize the quantum anomalous Hall effect at higher temperature in topological insulator heterostructures and to develop field effect devices for spintronic applications.

Topological magnetic dipolar interaction and nonlocal electric magnetization control in topological insulator heterostructures

The magnetoelectric effect predicted in topological insulators makes heterostructures that combine magnetic materials and such insulators promising candidates for spintronics applications. Here, we theoretically consider a setup that exhibits two well-separated interfaces between a topological insulator and a ferromagnetic insulator. We show that there is a topological magnetic dipole-dipole interaction stemming from long-range Coulomb interactions. We analytically derive the magnetization dynamics at the two interfaces and discuss how the long-range coupling can be applied to non-locally induce the formation of a magnetic texture at one interface by suitably gating the other interface.

Experimental observation of two massless Dirac-fermion gases in graphene-topological insulator heterostructure

Graphene and topological insulators (TI) possess two-dimensional (2D) Dirac fermions with distinct physical properties. Integrating these two Dirac materials in a single device creates interesting opportunities for exploring new physics of interacting massless Dirac fermions. Here we report on a practical route to experimental fabrication of graphene–Sb2Te3 heterostructure. The graphene–TI heterostructures are prepared by using a dry transfer of chemical-vapor-deposition grown graphene film. ARPES measurements confirm the coexistence of topological surface states of Sb2Te3 and Dirac π bands of graphene, and identify the twist angle in the graphene–TI heterostructure. The results suggest a potential tunable electronic platform in which two different Dirac low-energy states dominate the transport behavior.

Structural and proximity-induced ferromagnetic properties of topological insulator-magnetic insulator heterostructures

The spontaneously broken time reversal symmetry can lead to the formation of an energy gap in the Dirac spectrum of the surface states of a topological insulator (TI) which can consequently give rise to a variety of interesting phenomena potentially useful for spintronics. In this work, we couple a non-magnetic TI to a high Curie temperature TC magnetic insulator to induce strong exchange interaction via the proximity effect. We have successfully grown 5 quintuple layer thick ternary TI (BixSb1-x)2Te3 films on atomically flat yttrium iron garnet (YIG) film with the combination of molecular beam epitaxy and pulsed laser deposition, in which the Fermi level position relative to the Dirac point is varied by controlling the Bi:Sb ratio. The anomalous Hall effect (AHE) and suppressed weak antilocalization (WAL) measured under out of plane magnetic fields reveal that the TI surface in contact with YIG is magnetized. Our high-quality (BixSb1-x)2Te3/Y IG heterostructure provides a tunable system for exploring the quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) at higher temperatures in TI-based spintronic devices.

Geometric Hall effects in topological insulator heterostructures

Two intriguing manifestations of Hall physics are reported in a topologically insulating heterostructure: a sign-reversal of the anomalous Hall effect and the emergence of a topological Hall effect.