Yige Chen

Topological nodal line semimetals with and without spin-orbital coupling

lines in the Brillouin zone. We propose two different classes of symmetry protected nodal lines in the absence and in the presence of spin-orbital coupling (SOC), respectively. In the former, we discuss nodal lines that are protected by a combination of inversion symmetry and time-reversal symmetry, yet, unlike previously studied nodal lines in the same symmetry class, each nodal line has a Z2 monopole charge and can only be created (annihilated) in pairs. In the second class, with SOC, we show that a nonsymmorphic symmetry (screw axis)

Topological crystalline metal in orthorhombic perovskite iridates

Since topological insulators were theoretically predicted and experimentally observed in semiconductors with strong spin-orbit coupling, increasing attention has been drawn to topological materials that host exotic surface states. These surface excitations are stable against perturbations since they are protected by global or spatial/lattice symmetries. Following the success in achieving various topological insulators, a tempting challenge now is to search for metallic materials with novel topological properties. Here we predict that orthorhombic perovskite iridates realize a new class of metals dubbed topological crystalline metals, which support zero-energy surface states protected by certain lattice symmetry. These surface states can be probed by photoemission and tunnelling experiments. Furthermore, we show that by applying magnetic fields, the topological crystalline metal can be driven into other topological metallic phases, with different topological properties and surface states.

Topological crystalline semimetals in non-symmorphic lattices

Numerous efforts have been devoted to reveal exotic semimetallic phases with topologically nontrivial bulk and/or surface states in materials with strong spin-orbit coupling. In particular, semimetals with nodal line Fermi surface (FS) exhibit novel properties, and searching for candidate materials becomes an interesting research direction. Here we provide a generic condition for a fourfold degenerate nodal line FS in nonsymmorphic crystals with inversion and time-reversal symmetry (TRS). When there are two glide planes or screw axes perpendicular to each other, a pair of Bloch bands related by nonsymmorphic symmetry become degenerate on a Brillouin zone (BZ) boundary. There are two pairs of such bands, and they disperse in a way that the partners of two pairs are exchanged on other BZ boundaries. This enforces a nodal line FS on a BZ boundary plane protected by nonsymmorphic symmetries. When TRS is broken, fourfold degenerate Dirac points or Weyl ring FS could occur depending on a direction of the magnetic field. On a certain surface double helical surface states exist, which become double Fermi arcs as TRS is broken.

Surface States of Perovskite Iridates AIrO

There have been increasing efforts in realizing topological metallic phases with nontrivial surface states. It was suggested that orthorhombic perovskite iridates are classified as a topological crystalline metal (TCM) with flat surface states protected by lattice symmetries. Here we perform first-principles electronic structure calculations for epitaxially stabilized orthorhombic perovskite iridates. Remarkably, two different types of topological surface states are found depending on surface directions. On side surfaces, flat surface states protected by lattice symmetries emerge, manifesting the topological crystalline character. On the top surface, on the other hand, an unexpected Dirac cone appears, indicating surface states protected by a time-reversal symmetry, which is confirmed by the presence of a nontrivial topological

_3

\mathbb{Z}_2

; Signatures of Topological Crystalline Metal with Nontrivial

index. These results suggest that the orthorhombic iridates are unique systems exhibiting both lattice- and global-symmetry-protected topological phases and surface states. Transitions to weak and strong topological insulators and implications of surface states in light of angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy are also discussed.

Z_2

We study topological phases in Iridium (Ir) oxide superlattices of orthorhombic perovskite-type grown along the [001] crystallographic axis. Due to strong spin-orbit coupling of Ir 5d-orbitals and electronic correlation effects, Ir oxide bilayer superlattices display topological magnetic insulators exhibiting quantized anomalous Hall effects. Depending on stacking of two layers, we also found a valley Hall insulator with counter-propagating edge currents from two different valleys and a topological crystalline insulator with edge states protected by the crystal lattice symmetry. In a single layer Ir oxide superlattice, a topological insulator can be achieved, when a strain field is applied to break the symmetry of a glide plane protecting the Dirac points. In the presence of a magnetic ordering or in-plane magnetic field, it turns into a topological magnetic insulator. We discuss essential ingredients for these topological phases and experimental signatures to test our theoretical proposals.

Index

Three-dimensional (3D) topological Dirac semimetals (TDSs) are rare but important as a versatile platform for exploring exotic electronic properties and topological phase transitions. A quintessential feature of TDSs is 3D Dirac fermions associated with bulk electronic states near the Fermi level. Using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we have observed such bulk Dirac cones in epitaxially grown α-Sn films on InSb(111), the first such TDS system realized in an elemental form. First-principles calculations confirm that epitaxial strain is key to the formation of the TDS phase. A phase diagram is established that connects the 3D TDS phase through a singular point of a zero-gap semimetal phase to a topological insulator phase. The nature of the Dirac cone crosses over from 3D to 2D as the film thickness is reduced.

Topological phases in Iridium oxide superlattices: quantized anomalous charge or valley Hall insulators

The Dirac equation for relativistic electron waves is the parent model for Weyl and Majorana fermions as well as topological insulators. Simulation of Dirac physics in three-dimensional photonic crystals, though fundamentally important for topological phenomena at optical frequencies, encounters the challenge of synthesis of both Kramers double degeneracy and parity inversion. Here we show how type-II Dirac points—exotic Dirac relativistic waves yet to be discovered—are robustly realized through the nonsymmorphic screw symmetry. The emergent type-II Dirac points carry nontrivial topology and are the mother states of type-II Weyl points. The proposed all-dielectric architecture enables robust cavity states at photonic-crystal—air interfaces and anomalous refraction, with very low energy dissipation.Topological Photonics: Type-II Dirac points in dielectric crystalsCrystalline symmetries can be used to create and tune topological points in photonic crystals. If a material’s structure has energy bands that linearly disperse and touch at a point, quasiparticle can emerge that are described by the relativistic Dirac or Weyl equations. This is true for both electronic and photonic systems, but as light is bosonic—rather than fermionic—in nature, the physics is not directly analogous. An international team of researchers led by Jian-Hua Jiang from Soochow Universty and Hae-Young Kee from the University of Toronto and Canadian Institute for Advanced Research now predict that crystalline symmetries can be used to create different types of Dirac and Weyl points in all-dielectric photonic crystals, similar to those seen in their electronic counterparts, which also provide robust surface states that could be exploited for applications.

Elemental Topological Dirac Semimetal: α -Sn on InSb(111)

The brightness of third-generation synchrotron radiation from beamline 9.3.2 at the Advanced Light Source has been combined with the high-intensities and energy resolutions possible with its advanced photoelectron spectrometer/diffractometer experimental station in order to study the time dependence of the oxidation of the W(110) surface. This has been done via chemical-state-resolved core-level photoelectron spectroscopy and diffraction. This system has been studied previously by other methods such as LEED and STM, but several questions remain as to the basic kinetics of oxidation and the precise adsorption structures involved. By studying the decay and growth with time of various peaks in the W 4f{sub 7/2} photoelectron spectra, it should be possible to draw quantitative conclusions concerning the reaction kinetics involved. The authors have also measured full-solid-angle photoelectron diffraction patterns for the two oxygen-induced W states, and these should permit fully defining the different structures involved in this oxidation process.