On the effects of strain, defects, and interactions on the topological properties of HfTe5

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Jo, Na Hyun, Ashour, Omar A., Shu, Zhixue, Jozwiak, Chris, Bostwick, Aaron, Ryu, Sae Hee, Sun, Kai, Kong, Tai, Griffin, Sinead M., Rotenberg, Eli
Format: Preprint
Published: 2023
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author Jo, Na Hyun
Ashour, Omar A.
Shu, Zhixue
Jozwiak, Chris
Bostwick, Aaron
Ryu, Sae Hee
Sun, Kai
Kong, Tai
Griffin, Sinead M.
Rotenberg, Eli
author_facet Jo, Na Hyun
Ashour, Omar A.
Shu, Zhixue
Jozwiak, Chris
Bostwick, Aaron
Ryu, Sae Hee
Sun, Kai
Kong, Tai
Griffin, Sinead M.
Rotenberg, Eli
contents Topological insulators are characterized by spin-momentum-locked massless surface states which are robust under various perturbations. Manipulating such surface states is a topic of vigorous research, as a possible route for the realization of emergent many-body physics in topological systems. Thus far, time-reversal symmetry breaking via Coulomb and magnetic perturbations has been a dominant approach for the tuning of topological states. However, the effect of the structural degrees of freedom on quasi-particle dynamics in topological materials remains elusive. In this work, we demonstrate a transition in HfTe5 between distinct topological phases as a function of either Te vacancy concentration or applied strain; these phases are characterized theoretically as a transition from strong to weak topological insulator and experimentally by a transition from sharp surface states and Dirac crossing to a Fermi-liquid-like quasiparticle state in which these surface-localized features are heavily suppressed. Although vacancies can result in various consequences such as scattering, doping, and structural distortions, we show that changes in the lattice constants play the foremost role in determining the electronic structure, self-energy, and topological states of HfTe5. Our results demonstrate the possibility of using both defect chemistry and strain as control parameters for topological phase transitions and associated many-body physics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2303_10836
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle On the effects of strain, defects, and interactions on the topological properties of HfTe5
Jo, Na Hyun
Ashour, Omar A.
Shu, Zhixue
Jozwiak, Chris
Bostwick, Aaron
Ryu, Sae Hee
Sun, Kai
Kong, Tai
Griffin, Sinead M.
Rotenberg, Eli
Materials Science
Topological insulators are characterized by spin-momentum-locked massless surface states which are robust under various perturbations. Manipulating such surface states is a topic of vigorous research, as a possible route for the realization of emergent many-body physics in topological systems. Thus far, time-reversal symmetry breaking via Coulomb and magnetic perturbations has been a dominant approach for the tuning of topological states. However, the effect of the structural degrees of freedom on quasi-particle dynamics in topological materials remains elusive. In this work, we demonstrate a transition in HfTe5 between distinct topological phases as a function of either Te vacancy concentration or applied strain; these phases are characterized theoretically as a transition from strong to weak topological insulator and experimentally by a transition from sharp surface states and Dirac crossing to a Fermi-liquid-like quasiparticle state in which these surface-localized features are heavily suppressed. Although vacancies can result in various consequences such as scattering, doping, and structural distortions, we show that changes in the lattice constants play the foremost role in determining the electronic structure, self-energy, and topological states of HfTe5. Our results demonstrate the possibility of using both defect chemistry and strain as control parameters for topological phase transitions and associated many-body physics.
title On the effects of strain, defects, and interactions on the topological properties of HfTe5
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10836