While some of the most elegant applications of topological insulators, such as quantum anomalous Hall effect, require the preservation of Dirac surface states in the presence of time-reversal symmetry breaking, other phenomena such as spin-charge conversion rather rely on the ability for these surface states to imprint their spin texture on adjacent magnetic layers. In this work, we investigate the spin-momentum locking of the surface states of a wide range of monolayer transition metals (3$d$-TM) deposited on top of Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$ topological insulators using first principles calculations. We find an anticorrelation between the magnetic moment of the 3$d$-TM and the magnitude of the spin-momentum locking {\em induced} by the Dirac surface states. While the magnetic moment is large in the first half of the 3$d$ series, following Hund's rule, the spin-momentum locking is maximum in the second half of the series. We explain this trend as arising from a compromise between intra-atomic magnetic exchange and covalent bonding between the 3$d$-TM overlayer and the Dirac surface states. As a result, while Cr and Mn overlayers can be used successfully for the observation of quantum anomalous Hall effect or the realization of axion insulators, Co and Ni are substantially more efficient for spin-charge conversion effects, e.g. spin-orbit torque and charge pumping.
Weak topological insulators possess a symmetry related set of Dirac-Weyl cones in the surface Brillouin zone, implying misorientation between the principle axis of the low energy manifold of the bulk and the surface normal. We show that this feature of weak topological insulators comes with a hidden richness of surface spin textures, and that by misorientation a helical texture can become an unusual hyperbolic spin texture. We illustrate this effect by comparison of the $M$-point and $Γ$-point Dirac-Weyl cones on the (111) surface of the crystalline topological insulator SnTe.
We derive the spin texture of a weak topological insulator via a supersymmetric approach that includes the roles of the bulk gap edge states and surface band bending. We find the spin texture can take one of four forms: (i) helical, (ii) hyperbolic, (iii) hedgehog, with spins normal to the Dirac-Weyl cone of the surface state, and (iv) hyperbolic hedgehog. Band bending determines the winding number in the case of a helical texture, and for all textures can be used to tune the spin texture polarization to zero. For the weak topological insulator SnTe, we show that inclusion of band bending is c…
We show that a semiconductor thin film can acquire a non-trivial spin texture due to the proximity effect induced by a topological insulator. The effect stems from coupling to the topological surface states and is present even when the insulator is doped. We propose a semiconductor/topological insulator heterostructure as a device that allows measuring interface properties and probing surface states in uncompensated samples. We also find that the topological insulator surface modes can be significantly broadened and shifted by the presence of metallic contacts.
Relativistic spin-orbit coupling plays an essential role in the field of topological insulators and quantum spintronics. It gives rise to the topological non-trivial band structure and enables electric manipulation of the spin degree of freedom. Because of the spin-orbit coupling, rich spin-orbital coupled textures can exist both in momentum and in real space. For three dimensional topological insulators in the Bi$_2$Se$_3$ family, topological surface states with p$_z$ orbitals have a left-handed spin texture for the upper Dirac cone and a right-handed spin texture for the lower Dirac cone. In…
We present first principles calculations of the nontrivial surface states and their spin-textures in the topological crystalline insulator SnTe. The surface state dispersion on the [001] surface exhibits four Dirac-cones centered along the intersection of the mirror plane and the surface plane. We propose a simple model of two interacting coaxial Dirac cones to describe both the surface state dispersion and the associated spin-texture. While the out-of-the-plane spin polarization is zero due to the crystalline and time-reversal symmetries, the in-plane spin texture shows helicity with some dis…
We proposed that the simultaneous presence of both Rashba and band inversion can lead to a Rashba-like spin-splitting formed by two bands with the same in-plane helical spin texture. Because of this unconventional spin texture, the backscattering is forbidden in edge and bulk conductivity channels. We propose a new non-centrosymmetric honeycomb-lattice quantum spin Hall (QSH) insulator family formed by the IV, V, and VII elements with this property. The system formed by Bi, Pb and I atoms is mechanically stable and has both a large Rashba spin-splitting of 60 meV and a large nontrivial band ga…
We have investigated spin reorientation phenomena and interaction driven effects under the presence of applied strains on the (001) surface of Pb$_{1-x}$Sn$_x$(Te, Se) topological crystalline insulators, which host multiple Dirac cones. Our analysis is based on a four-band $k\cdot p$ model, which captures the spin and orbital textures of the surface states at low energies around the $\bar{X}$ and $\bar{Y}$ points, including the Lifshitz transition. Even without breaking the time-reversal symmetry, we find that certain strains which break the mirror symmetry can induce hedgehog-like spin textur…
The protected surface states of topological insulators (TIs) form gapless Dirac cones corresponding non-degenerate eigenstates with helical spin polarisation. The presence of a warping term deforms the isotropic cone of the most simple model into snowflake Fermi surfaces as in Bi2Se3 and Bi2Te3. Their features have been identified in STM quasiparticle interference (QPI) experiments on isolated surfaces. Here we investigate the QPI spectrum for the TI thin-film geometry with finite tunnelling between the surface states. This leads to a dramatic change of spectrum due to gapping and a change in …
Topological spin textures such as skyrmions hold high potential for use as magnetically active elements in diverse near-future applications. While skyrmions in metallic multilayers attract great attention in this context, unleashing the myriad potential of skyrmions for various applications requires the discovery and customization of alternative host system paradigms. Here we developed and applied a chemical method to synthesize octahedral particles of the chiral insulating skyrmion host Cu2OSeO3 with both narrow size distribution, and tailored dimensions approaching the nanoscale. Combining m…
Topological insulators are novel macroscopic quantum-mechanical phase of matter, which hold promise for realizing some of the most exotic particles in physics as well as application towards spintronics and quantum computation. In all the known topological insulators, strong spin-orbit coupling is critical for the generation of the protected massless surface states. Consequently, a complete description of the Dirac state should include both the spin and orbital (spatial) parts of the wavefunction. For the family of materials with a single Dirac cone, theories and experiments agree qualitatively…
By breaking the inversion symmetry of the three-dimensional Dirac metal Na$_3$Bi, we realize topological insulator (TI) phases in the known compound NaBaBi using $ab~initio$ calculations. Two distinct TI phases emerge: one phase is due to band inversion between the Bi $p$ and Na $s$ bands, and the other phase (under pressure) is induced by inversion of the Bi $p$ and Ba $d$ bands. Both phases exhibit Dirac-cone-type surface states, but they have opposite spin textures. In the upper cone, a left-handed spin texture exists for the $s$-$p$ inverted phase (similar to a common TI, e.g., Bi$_2$Se$_3…
Recently discovered materials called three-dimensional topological insulators constitute examples of symmetry protected topological states in the absence of applied magnetic fields and cryogenic temperatures. A hallmark characteristic of these non-magnetic bulk insulators is the protected metallic electronic states confined to the material's surfaces. Electrons in these surface states are spin polarized with their spins governed by their direction of travel (linear momentum), resulting in a helical spin texture in momentum space. Spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (spin-ARPES)…
The development of spin-based applications of topological insulators requires the knowledge and understanding of spin texture configuration maps as they change via gating in the vicinity of an isolated Dirac node. An isolated (graphene-like) Dirac node, however, does not exist in Bi2Te3. While the isolation of surface states via transport channels has been promisingly achieved in Bi2Te3, it is not known how spin textures modulate while gating the surface. Another drawback of Bi2Te3 is that it features multiple band crossings while chemical potential is placed near the Dirac node (at least 3 no…
One of the most important properties of topological insulators (TIs) is the helical spin texture of the Dirac surface states, which has been theoretically and experimentally argued to be left-handed helical above the Dirac point and right handed helical below. However, since the spin is not a good quantum number in these strongly spin-orbit coupled systems, this can not be a complete statement, and we must consider the total angular momentum J = L + S that is a contribution of the spin and orbital terms. Using a combination of orbital and spin-resolved angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy…
The newly discovered topological crystalline insulators (TCIs) harbor a complex band structure involving multiple Dirac cones. These materials are potentially highly tunable by external electric field, temperature or strain and could find future applications in field-effect transistors, photodetectors, and nano-mechanical systems. Theoretically, it has been predicted that different Dirac cones, offset in energy and momentum-space, might harbor vastly different orbital character, a unique property which if experimentally realized, would present an ideal platform for accomplishing new spintronic…
While graphene is a semi-metal, recently synthesized hydrogenated graphene called graphane, turns out to be an insulator. We have probed the metal insulator Transition in graphene-graphane system within the framework of density functional theory. By analysing the evolutionary trends in the electronic structure for fifteen different hydrogen concentrations on graphene, we unravel some novel features of this transition. As hydrogen coverage increases the semi-metal turns first into a metal, then transforms into an insulator. The metallic phase is spatially inhomogeneous in the sense, it contains…
Electrically driven metal-insulator transition in vanadium dioxide (VO2) is of interest in emerging memory devices, neural computation, and high speed electronics. We report on the fabrication of out-of-plane VO2 metal-insulator-metal (MIM) structures and reproducible high-speed switching measurements in these two-terminal devices. We have observed a clear correlation between electrically-driven ON/OFF current ratio and thermally-induced resistance change during metal-insulator transition. It is also found that sharp metal-insulator transition could be triggered by external voltage pulses with…
The quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect is a quintessential consequence of non-zero Berry curvature in momentum-space. The QAH insulator harbors dissipation-free chiral edge states in the absence of an external magnetic field. On the other hand, the topological Hall (TH) effect, a transport hallmark of the chiral spin textures, is a consequence of real-space Berry curvature. While both the QAH and TH effects have been reported separately, their coexistence, a manifestation of entangled chiral edge states and chiral spin textures, has not been reported. Here, by inserting a TI layer between two…
The problem of screening the Coulomb interaction between charge carriers in type II heterostructures based on transition metal dichalcogenides is Analytically solved. At a sufficiently high density of charge carriers, the density dependence of the interlayer exciton energy is obtained. The energy of the interlayer exciton tends to zero in the metal--insulator transition point. The presented scheme of calculations makes it possible to find the temperature dependence of the density of this transition.
We develop an effective bulk model with a topological boundary condition to study the surface states of topological insulators. We find that the Dirac point energy, the band curvature and the spin texture of surface states are crystal face-dependent. For a given face on a sphere, the Dirac point energy is determined by the bulk physics that breaks p-h symmetry in the surface normal direction and is tunable by surface potentials that preserve T symmetry. Constant energy contours near the Dirac point are ellipses with spin textures that are helical on the S/N pole, collapsed to one dimension on …
A theory of self-excitation in the metal-insulator-metal structure doped with metal nanowires is developed for the case where the power is provided by an external source of radio waves. Both the transient stage of self-excitation and the steady-state regime of self-oscillation are analyzed in a fully analytical form. The numerical estimates demonstrate that this effect can be used for diverse practical purposes, in particular, for radio frequency power harvesting. These findings extend the approach developed in nano-optics to the field of electrical engineering.
Quantum transport in disordered ferromagnetic (III,Mn)V semiconductors is studied theoretically. Mesoscopic wires exhibit an Anderson disorder-induced metal-insulator transition that can be controlled by a weak external magnetic field. This metal-insulator transition should also occur in other materials with large anisotropic magneto resistance effects. The transition can be useful for studies of zero-temperature quantum critical phase transitions and fundamental material properties.
Tunable and highly reproducible metal-insulator transitions have been observed in bilayer graphene upon thermal annealing at 400 K under high vacuum conditions. Before annealing, the sample is metallic in the whole temperature regime of study. Upon annealing, the conductivity changes from metallic to that of an insulator and the transition temperature is a function of annealing time. The pristine metallic state can be reinstated by exposing to air thereby inducing changes in the electronic properties by adsorbing water vapor, which makes graphene a technologically promising material for sensor…
Three dimensional topological insulator crystals consist of an insulating bulk enclosed by metallic surfaces, and detailed theoretical predictions about the surface state band topology and spin texture are available. While several topological insulator materials are currently known, the existence and topology of these metallic states have only ever been probed for one particular surface orientation of a given material. For most topological insulators, such as Bi$_{1-x}$Sb$_{x}$ and Bi$_2$Se$_3$, this surface is the closed-packed (111) surface and it supports one topologically guaranteed surfac…
The emergence of topological order in graphene is in great demand for the realization of quantum spin Hall states. Recently, it is theoretically proposed that the spin textures of surface states in topological insulator can be directly transferred to graphene by means of proximity effect. Here we report the observations of the topological proximity effect in the graphene-topological insulator Bi2Se3 heterojunctions via magnetotransport measurements. The coupling between the p_z orbitals of graphene and the p orbitals of surface states on the Bi2Se3 bottom surface can be enhanced by applying pe…
We derive the Onsager response matrix of fluctuation-mediated spin-collinear transport through a ferromagnetic insulator and normal metal interface driven by a temperature difference, spin accumulation, or magnetic field. We predict magnon-squeezing spin currents, magnetic field-induced cooling (magnon Peltier effect), temperature induced magnetization (thermal magnetic field) as well as universal spin Seebeck/Peltier coefficients.
The spin-helical surface states in three-dimensional topological insulator (TI), such as Bi2Se3, are predicted to have superior efficiency in converting charge current into spin polarization. This property is said to be responsible for the giant spin-orbit torques observed in ferromagnetic metal/TI structures. In this work, using first-principles and model tight-binding calculations, we investigate the interface between the topological insulator Bi2Se3 and 3d-transition ferromagnetic metals Ni and Co. We find that the difference in the work functions of the topological insulator and the ferrom…
Mott insulating behavior is induced by strong electron correlation and can lead to exotic states of matter such as unconventional superconductivity and quantum spin liquids. Recent advances in van der Waals material synthesis enable the exploration of novel Mott systems in the two-dimensional limit. Here we report characterization of the local electronic properties of single- and few-layer 1T-TaSe2 via spatial- and momentum-resolved spectroscopy involving scanning tunneling microscopy and angle-resolved photoemission. Our combined experimental and theoretical study indicates that electron corr…
The concept of a topological Kondo insulator (TKI) has been brought forward as a new class of topological insulators in which non-trivial surface states reside in the bulk Kondo band gap at low temperature due to the strong spin-orbit coupling [1-3]. In contrast to other three-dimensional (3D) topological insulators (e.g. Bi2Se3), a TKI is truly insulating in the bulk [4]. Furthermore, strong electron correlations are present in the system, which may interact with the novel topological phase. Applying spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (SARPES) to the Kondo insulator SmB6, a p…
The interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) in multilayers of heavy metal and ferromagnetic metals enables the stabilization of novel chiral spin structures such as skyrmions. Magnetic insulators, on the other hand can exhibit enhanced dynamics and properties such as lower magnetic damping and therefore it is of interest to combine the properties enabled by interfacial DMI with insulating systems. Here, we demonstrate the presence of interfacial DMI in heterostructures that include insulating magnetic layers. We use a bilayer of perpendicularly magnetized insulating thulium iron ga…
Topological insulators are a new class of insulators in which a bulk gap for electronic excitations is generated by strong spin orbit coupling. These novel materials are distinguished from ordinary insulators by the presence of gapless metallic boundary states, akin to the chiral edge modes in quantum Hall systems, but with unconventional spin textures. Recently, experiments and theoretical efforts have provided strong evidence for both two- and three-dimensional topological insulators and their novel edge and surface states in semiconductor quantum well structures and several Bi-based compoun…
By combining transport and photo emission measurements on (Bi1-xInx)2Se3 thin films, we report that this system transforms from a topologically non-trivial metal into a topologically trivial band insulator through three quantum phase transitions. At x = 3-7%, there is a transition from a topologically non-trivial metal to a trivial metal. At x = 15%, the metal becomes a variable-range-hopping insulator. Finally, above x = 25%, the system becomes a true band insulator with its resistance immeasurably large even at room temperature. This material provides a new venue to investigate topologically…
Results from transport measurements in individual $W_{x}V_{1-x}O_{2}$ nanowires with varying extents of $W$ doping are presented. An abrupt thermally driven metal-insulator transition (MIT) is observed in these wires and the transition temperature decreases with increasing $W$ content at a pronounced rate of - (48-56) K/$at.%W$, suggesting a significant alteration of the phase diagram from the bulk. These nanowires can also be driven through a voltage-driven MIT and the temperature dependence of the insulator to metal and metal to insulator switchings are studied. While driving from an insulat…
A consistent device model to describe current-voltage characteristics of metal/insulator/metal systems is developed. In this model the insulator and the metal electrodes are described within the same theoretical framework by using density of states distributions. This approach leads to differential equations for the electric field which have to be solved in a self consistent manner by considering the continuity of the electric displacement and the electrochemical potential in the complete system. The model is capable of describing the current-voltage characteristics of the metal/insulator/meta…
Magnetic insulators are important materials for a range of next generation memory and spintronic applications. Structural constraints in this class of devices generally require a clean heterointerface that allows effective magnetic coupling between the insulating layer and the conducting layer. However, there are relatively few examples of magnetic insulators which can be synthesized with surface qualities that would allow these smooth interfaces and precisely tuned interfacial magnetic exchange coupling which might be applicable at room temperature. In this work, we demonstrate an example of …
The role of orbital ordering on metal-insulator transition of transition-metal oxides is investigated by the cluster self-consistent field approach in the strong correlation regime. A clear dependence of the insulating gap on the orbital order parameter is found in the single-particle excitation spectra. The thermal fluctuation drives the orbital order-disorder transition, diminishes the gap and leads to the metal-insulator transition. The interplay between spins and orbits results in unusual temperature dependence of the orbital polarization in the orbital insulator, which can be seen in the …
One of the major strategies to control magnetism in spintronics is to utilize the coupling between electron spin and its orbital motion. The Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit couplings induce magnetic textures of band electrons called spin momentum locking, which produces a spin torque by the injection of electric current. However, joule heating had been a bottleneck for device applications. Here, we propose a theory to generate further rich spin textures in insulating antiferromagnets with broken spatial inversion symmetry (SIS), which is easily controlled by a small magnetic field. In antife…
We investigate the bias-induced insulator-metal transition in organic electronics devices, on the basis of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model combined with the non-equilibrium Green's function formalism. The insulator-metal transition is explained with the energy levels crossover that eliminates the Peierls phase and delocalizes the electron states near the threshold voltage. This may account for the experimental observations on the devices that exhibit intrinsic bistable conductance switching with large on-off ratio.
We have succeeded in growing ferromagnetic metals (Co, Fe, and NiFe)/ Al2O3/ AlGaAs heterostructures with homogeneous and flat interfaces. The electro-luminescence (EL) from the light emitting diode (LED) consisting of the metal/insulator/semiconductor (MIS) structure depends on the magnetization direction of the ferromagnetic electrode at room temperature. This fact shows that a spin-injection from the ferromagnetic metal to the semiconductor is achieved. The spin-injection efficiency is estimated to be the order of 1 % at room temperature.
We investigate LiVS2 and LiVSe2 with a triangular lattice as itinerant analogues of LiVO2, known for the formation of valence bond solid (VBS) state out of S = 1 frustrated magnet. LiVS2, which is located at the border between a metal and a correlated insulator, shows a first ordered transition from a paramagnetic metal to a VBS insulator at Tc ~ 305 K upon cooling. The presence of VBS state in the close vicinity of insulator-metal transition may suggest the importance of itinerancy in the formation of VBS state. We argue that the high temperature metallic phase of LiVS2 has a pseudo-gap, like…
By treating the electron-ion interaction as perturbation in the first-principles Hamiltonian, we have calculated the density response functions of a fluid alkali metal to find an interesting charge instability due to anomalous electronic density fluctuations occurring at some finite wave vector ${\bi Q}$ in a dilute fluid phase above the liquid-gas critical point. Since $|{\bi Q}|$ is smaller than the diameter of the Fermi surface, this instability necessarily impedes the electric conduction, implying its close relevance to the metal-insulator transition in fluid alkali metals.
We report an experimental study of the time dependence of resistivity of a La$_{0.9}$Sr$_{0.1}$MnO$_{3}$ ultrathin film in order to elucidate the underlying mechanism for metal-insulator transition and colossal magnetoresistance CMR effect. There is a clear change of sign in the resistive relaxation rate across the metal-insulator transition driven by temperature or magnetic field. When measuring in increasing temperature or decreasing magnetic field, the resistivity increases with time in the metallic state but decreases with time in the insulating state. These relaxation processes indicate t…
Metal-insulator transition in Ca_{1-x}Li_xPd_3O_4 has been studied through charge transport measurements. The resistivity, the Seebeck coefficient, and the Hall coefficient are consistently explained in terms of a simple one-band picture, where a hole with a moderately enhanced mass is itinerant three-dimensionally. Contrary to the theoretical prediction [Phys. Rev. B62, 13426 (2000)], CaPd_3O_4 is unlikely to be an excitonic insulator, and holds a finite carrier concentration down to 4.2 K. Thus the metal-insulator transition in this system is basically driven by localization effects.
We present a method for calculating the spectrum of periodic solids within reduced density matrix functional theory. This method is validated by a detailed comparison of the angular momentum projected spectral density with that of well established many-body techniques, in all cases finding an excellent agreement. The physics behind the pressure induced insulator-metal phase transition in MnO is investigated. The driving mechanism of this transition is identified as increased crystal field splitting with pressure, resulting in a charge redistribution between the Mn $e_g$ and $t_2g$ symmetry pro…
Spin textures in k-space arising from spin-orbit coupling in non-centrosymmetric crystals find numerous applications in spintronics. We present a mechanism that leads to appearance of k-space spin texture due to spontaneous symmetry breaking driven by electronic correlations. Using dynamical mean-field theory we show that doping a spin-triplet excitonic insulator provides a means of creating new thermodynamic phases with unique properties. The numerical results are interpreted using analytic calculations within a generalized double-exchange framework.
Two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal oxide perovskites greatly expand the field of available 2D multifunctional material systems. Here, based on density functional theory calculations, we predicted the presence of ferromagnetism orders accompanying with an insulator-metal phase transition in bilayer $KNbO_{3}$ and $KTaO_{3}$ by applying strain engineering and/or external electric field. Our results will contribute to the applications of few-layer transition metal oxide perovskites in the emerging spintronics and straintronics.
We point out the generic competition between the Hund's coupling and the spin-orbit coupling in correlated materials, and this competition leads to an electronic dilemma between the Hund's metal and the relativistic insulators. Hund's metals refer to the fate of the would-be insulators where the Hund's coupling suppresses the correlation and drives the systems into correlated metals. Relativistic Mott insulators refer to the fate of the would-be metals where the relativistic spin-orbit coupling enhances the correlation and drives the systems into Mott insulators. These contradictory trends are…
