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Impurity effect on weak antilocalization in the topological insulator Bi2Te3
Hong-Tao He1, Gan Wang, Tao Zhang
1Department of Physics, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China.
Weak antilocalization in topological insulator Bi(2)Te(3) films is robust against nonmagnetic impurities but quenched by magnetic ones. Magnetic impurities destroy the π Berry phase, causing a class crossover in surface states.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Materials Science
- Quantum Phenomena
Background:
- Topological insulators (TIs) exhibit unique surface states with potential for novel electronic applications.
- Weak antilocalization (WAL) is a quantum interference effect sensitive to spin-orbit interactions and surface states.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the weak antilocalization (WAL) effect in topological insulator Bismuth Telluride (Bi(2)Te(3)) thin films.
- Determine the influence of nonmagnetic (Au) and magnetic (Fe) impurities on the WAL effect and topological surface states.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of Bi(2)Te(3) thin films.
- Low-temperature magnetoconductance measurements in tilted magnetic fields.
- Analysis of the effect of surface impurity deposition (Au and Fe) on magnetoconductance.
Main Results:
- Observed two-dimensional WAL effect attributed to surface carriers in Bi(2)Te(3) thin films.
- WAL effect remained robust after deposition of nonmagnetic Au impurities.
- WAL effect was quenched by magnetic Fe impurities, indicating destruction of the π Berry phase.
- Evidence of a crossover from symplectic to unitary symmetry classes upon Fe deposition in a 5 nm Bi(2)Te(3) film.
Conclusions:
- The π Berry phase of topological surface states in Bi(2)Te(3) is crucial for the observed WAL effect.
- Magnetic impurities significantly alter the electronic transport properties and symmetry classes of topological insulator surface states.
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