Crossover between weak antilocalization and weak localization of bulk states in ultrathin Bi₂Se₃ films

We report transport studies on the 5 nm thick Bi₂Se₃ topological insulator films which are grown via molecular beam epitaxy technique. The angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy data show that the Fermi level of the system lies in the bulk conduction band above the Dirac point, suggesting important contribution of bulk states to the transport results. In particular, the crossover from weak antilocalization to weak localization in the bulk states is observed in the parallel magnetic field measurements up to 50 Tesla. The measured magneto-resistance exhibits interesting anisotropy with respect to the orientation of parallel magnetic field B// and the current I, signifying intrinsic spin-orbit coupling in the Bi₂Se₃ films. Our work directly shows the crossover of quantum interference effect in the bulk states from weak antilocalization to weak localization. It presents an important step toward a better understanding of the existing three-dimensional topological insulators and the potential applications of nano-scale topological insulator devices.