Strong and Weak Topology Probed by Surface Science: Topological Insulator Properties of Phase Change Alloys and Heavy Metal Graphene (pdf)

Description

The edge state is as narrow as 0.8 nm, making it extremely attractive to device physics. Those strong and weak topological insulators are a new phase of quantum matter giving rise to robust boundary states which are protected from backscattering and localization.Christian Pauly demonstrates the strong topological properties of the technologically relevant phase change materials Sb₂Te₃ and Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ by using two powerful techniques for mapping the surface electronic structure: scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). In the case of a phase change material, this opens up the possibility of switching between an insulating amorphous and a conducting topological phase on nanosecond-time scales. Moreover, the author presents first experimental results of a weak topological insulator, namely on the bismuth-based graphene-like sheet system Bi₁₄Rh₃I₉, revealing a topologically protected one-dimensional edge channel as its fingerprint.