Depositing magnetic insulators on graphene has been a promising route to introduce magnetism via exchange proximity interaction in graphene for future spintronics applications. Molecule-based magnets may offer unique opportunities because of their synthesis versatility. Here, we investigated the magnetic proximity effect of epitaxial iron phthalocyanine (FePc) molecules on high-quality monolayer and bilayer graphene devices on hexagonal boron nitride substrate by probing the local and non-local transport. Although the FePc molecules introduce large hole doping effects combined with mobility degradation, the magnetic proximity gives rise to a canted antiferromagnetic state under a magnetic field in the monolayer graphene. On bilayer graphene and FePc heterostructure devices, the non-local transport reveals a pronounced Zeeman spin-Hall effect. Further analysis of the scattering mechanism in the bilayer shows a dominated long-range scattering. Our findings in graphene/organic magnetic insulator heterostructure provide a new insight for the use of molecule-based magnets in two-dimensional spintronic devices.
Heterostructures of Dirac materials such as graphene and topological insulators provide interesting platforms to explore exotic quantum states of electrons in solids. Here we study the electronic structure of graphene-Sb2Te3 heterostructure using density functional theory and tight-binding methods. We show that the epitaxial graphene on Sb2Te3 turns into quantum spin-Hall phase due to its proximity to the topological insulating Sb2Te3. It is found that the epitaxial graphene develops a giant spin-orbit gap of about ~20 meV, which is about three orders of magnitude larger than that of pristine …
We report on spatial measurements of the superconducting proximity effect in epitaxial graphene induced by a graphene-superconductor interface. Superconducting aluminum films were grown on epitaxial multilayer graphene on SiC. The aluminum films were discontinuous with networks of trenches in the film morphology reaching down to exposed graphene terraces. Scanning tunneling spectra measured on the graphene terraces show a clear decay of the superconducting energy gap with increasing separation from the graphene-aluminum edges. The spectra were well described by Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) …
We report that the π-electrons of graphene can be spin-polarized to create a phase with a significant spin-orbit gap at the Dirac point (DP) using a graphene-interfaced topological insulator hybrid material. We have grown epitaxial Bi2Te2Se (BTS) films on a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) graphene. We observe two linear surface bands both from the CVD graphene notably flattened and BTS coexisting with their DPs separated by 0.53 eV in the photoemission data measured with synchrotron photons. We further demonstrate that the separation between the two DPs, ΔD-D, can be artificially fine-tuned by…
Semiconductor-based Josephson junctions provide a platform for studying proximity effect due to the possibility of tuning junction properties by gate voltage and large-scale fabrication of complex Josephson circuits. Recently Josephson junctions using InAs weak link with epitaxial aluminum contact have improved the product of normal resistance and critical current, $I_cR_N$, in addition to fabrication process reliability. Here we study similar devices with epitaxial contact and find large supercurrent and substantial product of $I_cR_N$ in our junctions. However we find a striking difference w…
We demonstrate the transfer of the superconducting properties of NbTi---a large-gap high-critical-field superconductor---into an InAs heterostructure via a thin intermediate layer of epitaxial Al. Two device geometries, a Josephson junction and a gate-defined quantum point contact, are used to characterize interface transparency and the two-step proximity effect. In the Josephson junction, multiple Andreev reflection reveal near-unity transparency, with an induced gap $Δ^*=0.50~\mathrm{meV}$ and a critical temperature of $7.8~\mathrm{K}$. Tunneling spectroscopy yields a hard induced gap in the…
The introduction of superconductivity to the Dirac surface states of a topological insulator leads to a topological superconductor, which may support topological quantum computing through Majorana zero modes. The development of a scalable material platform is key to the realization of topological quantum computing. Here we report on the growth and properties of high-quality (Bi,Sb)2Te3/graphene/gallium heterostructures. Our synthetic approach enables atomically sharp layers at both hetero-interfaces, which in turn promotes proximity-induced superconductivity that originates in the gallium film…
Graphene holds promises for exploring exotic superconductivity with Dirac-like fermions. Making graphene a superconductor at large scales is however a long-lasting challenge. A possible solution relies on epitaxially-grown graphene, using a superconducting substrate. Such substrates are scarce, and usually destroy the Dirac character of the electronic band structure. Using electron diffraction (reflection high-energy, and low-energy), scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and density functional th…
Many present and future applications of superconductivity would benefit from electrostatic control of carrier density and tunneling rates, the hallmark of semiconductor devices. One particularly exciting application is the realization of topological superconductivity as a basis for quantum information processing. Proposals in this direction based on proximity effect in semiconductor nanowires are appealing because the key ingredients are currently in hand. However, previous instances of proximitized semiconductors show significant tunneling conductance below the superconducting gap, suggesting…
The ability to imprint a given material property to another through proximity effect in layered two-dimensional materials has opened the way to the creation of designer materials. Here, we use molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) for a direct synthesis of a superconductor-magnet hybrid heterostructure by combining superconducting niobium diselenide (NbSe$_2$) with the monolayer ferromagnetic chromium tribromide (CrBr$_3$). Using different characterization techniques and density-functional theory (DFT) calculations, we have confirmed that the CrBr$_3$ monolayer retains its ferromagnetic ordering with a…
We demonstrate robust superconducting proximity effect in InAs$_{0.5}$Sb$_{0.5}$ quantum wells grown with epitaxial Al contact, which has important implications for mesoscopic and topological superconductivity. Unlike more commonly studied InAs and InSb semiconductors, bulk InAs$_{0.5}$Sb$_{0.5}$ supports stronger spin-orbit coupling and larger $g$-factor. However, these potentially desirable properties have not been previously measured in epitaxial heterostructures with superconductors, which could serve as a platform for fault-tolerant topological quantum computing. Through structural and tr…
Generally, it is supposed that the Fermi level in epitaxial graphene is controlled by two effects: p-type polarization doping induced by the bulk of the hexagonal SiC(0001) substrate and overcompensation by donor-like states related to the buffer layer. In this work, we evidence that this effect is also related to the specific underlying SiC terrace. We fabricated a periodic sequence of non-identical SiC terraces, which are unambiguously attributed to specific SiC surface terminations. A clear correlation between the SiC termination and the electronic graphene properties is experimentally obse…
Using the superconducting proximity effect for engineering a topological superconducting state in a topological insulator (TI) is a promising route to realize Majorana fermions. However, epitaxial growth of a superconductor on the TI surface to achieve a good proximity effect has been a challenge. We discovered that simply depositing Pd on thin films of the TI material (Bi$_{1-x}$Sb$_x$)$_2$Te$_3$ leads to an epitaxial self-formation of PdTe$_2$ superconductor having the superconducting transition temperature of ~1 K. This self-formed superconductor proximitizes the TI, which is confirmed by t…
We have studied a near-surface two-dimensional electron gas based on an InAs quantum well on a GaAs substrate. In devices without a dielectric layer we estimated large electron mobilities on the order of $10^5$ cm$^2$/Vs. We have observed quantized conductance in a quantum point contact, and determined the g-factor. Using samples with an epitaxial Al layer, we defined multiple Josephson junctions and found the critical current to be gate tunable. Based on multiple Andreev reflections the semiconductor-superconductor interface is transparent, with an induced gap of 125 $μ$eV. Our results demons…
Ultra-thin Pt films grown on insulating ferrimagnetic CoFe2O4 (111) epitaxial films display a magnetoresistance upon rotating the magnetization of the magnetic layer. We report here X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) recorded at Pt-L2,3 and Pt-M3 edges. The results indicate that the Pt magnetic moment, if any, is below the detection limit (< 0.001 μ$_B$/Pt), thus strongly favoring the view that the presence of CoFe2O4 does not induce the formation of magnetic moments in Pt. Therefore, the observed magnetoresistance cannot be attributed to some sort of proximity-induced magnetic moments a…
Hybrid semiconducting nanowire devices combining epitaxial superconductor and ferromagnetic insulator layers have been recently explored experimentally as an alternative platform for topological superconductivity at zero applied magnetic field. In this proof-of-principle work we show that the topological regime can be reached in actual devices depending on some geometrical constraints. To this end, we perform numerical simulations of InAs wires in which we explicitly include the superconducting Al and magnetic EuS shells, as well as the interaction with the electrostatic environment at a self-…
We report that thin films of a prototype topological insulator, Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$, can be epitaxially grown onto the (0001) surface of BaFe$_{12}$O$_{19}$(BaM), a magnetic insulator with high Curie temperature and large perpendicular anisotropy. In the Bi$_2$Se$_3$ thin films grown on non-magnetic substrates, classic weak antilocalization (WAL) is manifested as cusp-shaped positive magnetoresistance (MR) in perpendicular magnetic fields and parabola-shaped positive MR in parallel fields, whereas in Bi$_{2}$Se$_{3}$/BaM heterostructures the low field MR is parabola-shaped, which is positive in p…
Tuning interactions between Dirac states in graphene has attracted enormous interest because it can modify the electronic spectrum of the two-dimensional material, enhance electron correlations, and give rise to novel condensed-matter phases such as superconductors, Mott insulators, Wigner crystals and quantum anomalous Hall insulators. Previous works predominantly focus on the flat band dispersion of coupled Dirac states from different graphene layers. In this work, we propose a new route to realizing flat band physics in monolayer graphene under a periodic modulation from substrates. We take…
The development of graphene (Gr) spintronics requires the ability to engineer epitaxial Gr heterostructures with interfaces of high quality, in which the intrinsic properties of Gr are modified through proximity with a ferromagnet to allow for efficient room temperature spin manipulation or the stabilization of new magnetic textures. These heterostructures can be prepared in a controlled way by intercalation through graphene of different metals. Using photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM), we achieve a nanoscale control of thermal activated intercalation of h…
Graphene is hailed as an ideal material for spintronics due to weak intrinsic spin-orbit interaction that facilitates lateral spin transport and tunability of its electronic properties, including a possibility to induce magnetism in graphene. Another promising application of graphene is related to its use as a spacer separating ferromagnetic metals (FMs) in vertical magnetoresistive devices, the most prominent class of spintronic devices widely used as magnetic sensors. In particular, few-layer graphene was predicted to act as a perfect spin filter. Here we show that the role of graphene in su…
We study the proximity effect in a one-dimensional nanowire strongly coupled to a finite superconductor with a characteristic size which is much shorter than its coherence length. Such geometries have become increasingly relevant in recent years in the experimental search for Majorana fermions with the development of thin epitaxial Al shells which form a very strong contact with either InAs or InSb nanowires. So far, however, no theoretical treatment of the proximity effect in these systems has accounted for the finite size of the superconducting film. We show that the finite-size effects beco…
Epitaxially grown, high quality semiconductor InSb nanowires are emerging material systems for the development of high performance nanoelectronics and quantum information processing and communication devices, and for the studies of new physical phenomena in solid state systems. Here, we report on measurements of a superconductor-normal conductor-superconductor junction device fabricated from an InSb nanowire with aluminum based superconducting contacts. The measurements show a proximity induced supercurrent flowing through the InSb nanowire segment, with a critical current tunable by a gate, i…
In magnetic topological phases of matter, the quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect is an emergent phenomenon driven by ferromagnetic doping, magnetic proximity effects and strain engineering. The realization of QAH states with multiple dissipationless edge and surface conduction channels defined by a Chern number $\mathcal{C}\geq1$ was foreseen for the ferromagnetically ordered SnTe class of topological crystalline insulators (TCIs). From magnetotransport measurements on Sn$_{1-x}$Mn$_{x}$Te ($0.00\leq{x}\leq{0.08}$)(111) epitaxial thin films grown by molecular beam epitaxy on BaF$_{2}$ substra…
We have determined the magnetic properties of epitaxially grown Dy islands on graphene/SiC(0001) that are passivated by a gold film (deposited in the ultra-high vacuum growth chamber) for {\it ex-situ} X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD). Our sum-rule analysis of the Dy $M_{4,5}$ XMCD spectra at low temperatures ($T=15$ K) as a function of magnetic field assuming Dy$^{3+}$ (spin configuration $^6H_{15/2}$) indicate that the projection of the magnetic moment along an applied magnetic field of 5 T is 3.5(3) $μ_B$. Temperature dependence of the magnetic moment (extracted from the $M_5$ XMCD …
