Gate-tunable Intrinsic Anomalous Hall Effect in Epitaxial MnBi2Te4 Films.

The anomalous Hall effect (AHE) is an important transport signature revealing topological properties of magnetic materials and their spin textures. Recently, MnBi2Te4 has been demonstrated to be an intrinsic magnetic topological insulator. However, the origin of its intriguing AHE behaviors remains elusive. Here, we demonstrate the Berry curvature-dominated intrinsic AHE in wafer-scale MnBi2Te4 films. By applying back-gate voltages, we observe an ambipolar conduction and n-p transition in ∼7-layer MnBi2Te4, where a quadratic relation between the AHE resistance and longitudinal resistance suggests its intrinsic AHE nature. In particular, for ∼3-layer MnBi2Te4, the AHE sign can be tuned from pristine negative to positive. First-principles calculations unveil that such an AHE reversal originated from the competing Berry curvature between oppositely polarized spin-minority-dominated surface states and spin-majority-dominated inner bands. Our results shed light on the underlying physical mechanism of the intrinsic AHE and provide new perspectives for the unconventional sign-tunable AHE.

Controlling the Zero Hall Plateau in a Quantum Anomalous Hall Insulator by In-Plane Magnetic Field.

We investigate the quantum anomalous Hall plateau transition in the presence of independent out-of-plane and in-plane magnetic fields. The perpendicular coercive field, zero Hall plateau width, and peak resistance value can all be systematically controlled by the in-plane magnetic field. The traces taken at various fields almost collapse into a single curve when the field vector is renormalized to an angle as a geometric parameter. These results can be explained consistently by the competition between magnetic anisotropy and in-plane Zeeman field, and the close relationship between quantum transport and magnetic domain structure. The accurate control of zero Hall plateau facilitates the search for chiral Majorana modes based on the quantum anomalous Hall system in proximity to a superconductor.

Tailoring the Hybrid Anomalous Hall Response in Engineered Magnetic Topological Insulator Heterostructures.

Engineering the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) is the key to manipulate the magnetic orders in the emerging magnetic topological insulators (MTIs). In this letter, we synthesize the epitaxial Bi2Te3/MnTe magnetic heterostructures and observe pronounced AHE signals from both layers combined together. The evolution of the resulting hybrid AHE intensity with the top Bi2Te3 layer thickness manifests the presence of an intrinsic ferromagnetic phase induced by the topological surface states at the heterolayer interface. More importantly, by doping the Bi2Te3 layer with Sb, we are able to manipulate the sign of the Berry phase-associated AHE component. Our results demonstrate the unparalleled advantages of MTI heterostructures over magnetically doped TI counterparts in which the tunability of the AHE response can be greatly enhanced. This in turn unveils a new avenue for MTI heterostructure-based multifunctional applications.

Tailoring exchange couplings in magnetic topological-insulator/antiferromagnet heterostructures.

Magnetic topological insulators such as Cr-doped (Bi,Sb)2Te3 provide a platform for the realization of versatile time-reversal symmetry-breaking physics. By constructing heterostructures exhibiting Néel order in an antiferromagnetic CrSb and ferromagnetic order in Cr-doped (Bi,Sb)2Te3, we realize emergent interfacial magnetic phenomena which can be tailored through artificial structural engineering. Through deliberate geometrical design of heterostructures and superlattices, we demonstrate the use of antiferromagnetic exchange coupling in manipulating the magnetic properties of magnetic topological insulators. Proximity effects are shown to induce an interfacial spin texture modulation and establish an effective long-range exchange coupling mediated by antiferromagnetism, which significantly enhances the magnetic ordering temperature in the superlattice. This work provides a new framework on integrating topological insulators with antiferromagnetic materials and unveils new avenues towards dissipationless topological antiferromagnetic spintronics.

Nanoscale ß-nuclear magnetic resonance depth imaging of topological insulators.

Considerable evidence suggests that variations in the properties of topological insulators (TIs) at the nanoscale and at interfaces can strongly affect the physics of topological materials. Therefore, a detailed understanding of surface states and interface coupling is crucial to the search for and applications of new topological phases of matter. Currently, no methods can provide depth profiling near surfaces or at interfaces of topologically inequivalent materials. Such a method could advance the study of interactions. Herein, we present a noninvasive depth-profiling technique based on ß-detected NMR (ß-NMR) spectroscopy of radioactive (8)Li(+) ions that can provide "one-dimensional imaging" in films of fixed thickness and generates nanoscale views of the electronic wavefunctions and magnetic order at topological surfaces and interfaces. By mapping the (8)Li nuclear resonance near the surface and 10-nm deep into the bulk of pure and Cr-doped bismuth antimony telluride films, we provide signatures related to the TI properties and their topological nontrivial characteristics that affect the electron-nuclear hyperfine field, the metallic shift, and magnetic order. These nanoscale variations in ß-NMR parameters reflect the unconventional properties of the topological materials under study, and understanding the role of heterogeneities is expected to lead to the discovery of novel phenomena involving quantum materials.

High-Current Gain Two-Dimensional MoS2-Base Hot-Electron Transistors.

The vertical transport of nonequilibrium charge carriers through semiconductor heterostructures has led to milestones in electronics with the development of the hot-electron transistor. Recently, significant advances have been made with atomically sharp heterostructures implementing various two-dimensional materials. Although graphene-base hot-electron transistors show great promise for electronic switching at high frequencies, they are limited by their low current gain. Here we show that, by choosing MoS2 and HfO2 for the filter barrier interface and using a noncrystalline semiconductor such as ITO for the collector, we can achieve an unprecedentedly high-current gain (α ∼ 0.95) in our hot-electron transistors operating at room temperature. Furthermore, the current gain can be tuned over 2 orders of magnitude with the collector-base voltage albeit this feature currently presents a drawback in the transistor performance metrics such as poor output resistance and poor intrinsic voltage gain. We anticipate our transistors will pave the way toward the realization of novel flexible 2D material-based high-density, low-energy, and high-frequency hot-carrier electronic applications.

Magnetization switching through giant spin-orbit torque in a magnetically doped topological insulator heterostructure.

Recent demonstrations of magnetization switching induced by in-plane current in heavy metal/ferromagnetic heterostructures (HMFHs) have drawn great attention to spin torques arising from large spin-orbit coupling (SOC). Given the intrinsic strong SOC, topological insulators (TIs) are expected to be promising candidates for exploring spin-orbit torque (SOT)-related physics. Here we demonstrate experimentally the magnetization switching through giant SOT induced by an in-plane current in a chromium-doped TI bilayer heterostructure. The critical current density required for switching is below 8.9 × 10(4) A cm(-2) at 1.9 K. Moreover, the SOT is calibrated by measuring the effective spin-orbit field using second-harmonic methods. The effective field to current ratio and the spin-Hall angle tangent are almost three orders of magnitude larger than those reported for HMFHs. The giant SOT and efficient current-induced magnetization switching exhibited by the bilayer heterostructure may lead to innovative spintronics applications such as ultralow power dissipation memory and logic devices.

Precise Quantization of the Anomalous Hall Effect near Zero Magnetic Field.

We report a nearly ideal quantum anomalous Hall effect in a three-dimensional topological insulator thin film with ferromagnetic doping. Near zero applied magnetic field we measure exact quantization in the Hall resistance to within a part per 10 000 and a longitudinal resistivity under 1 Ω per square, with chiral edge transport explicitly confirmed by nonlocal measurements. Deviations from this behavior are found to be caused by thermally activated carriers, as indicated by an Arrhenius law temperature dependence. Using the deviations as a thermometer, we demonstrate an unexpected magnetocaloric effect and use it to reach near-perfect quantization by cooling the sample below the dilution refrigerator base temperature in a process approximating adiabatic demagnetization refrigeration.

Electrical detection of spin-polarized surface states conduction in (Bi(0.53)Sb(0.47))2Te3 topological insulator.

Strong spin-orbit interaction and time-reversal symmetry in topological insulators enable the spin-momentum locking for the helical surface states. To date, however, there has been little report of direct electrical spin injection/detection in topological insulator. In this Letter, we report the electrical detection of spin-polarized surface states conduction using a Co/Al2O3 ferromagnetic tunneling contact in which the compound topological insulator (Bi0.53Sb0.47)2Te3 was used to achieve low bulk carrier density. Resistance (voltage) hysteresis with the amplitude up to about 10 Ω was observed when sweeping the magnetic field to change the relative orientation between the Co electrode magnetization and the spin polarization of surface states. The two resistance states were reversible by changing the electric current direction, affirming the spin-momentum locking in the topological surface states. Angle-dependent measurement was also performed to further confirm that the abrupt change in the voltage (resistance) was associated with the magnetization switching of the Co electrode. The spin voltage amplitude was quantitatively analyzed to yield an effective spin polarization of 1.02% for the surface states conduction in (Bi0.53Sb0.47)2Te3. Our results show a direct evidence of spin polarization in the topological surface states conduction. It might open up great opportunities to explore energy-efficient spintronic devices based on topological insulators.

Proximity induced high-temperature magnetic order in topological insulator--ferrimagnetic insulator heterostructure.

Introducing magnetic order in a topological insulator (TI) breaks time-reversal symmetry of the surface states and can thus yield a variety of interesting physics and promises for novel spintronic devices. To date, however, magnetic effects in TIs have been demonstrated only at temperatures far below those needed for practical applications. In this work, we study the magnetic properties of Bi2Se3 surface states (SS) in the proximity of a high Tc ferrimagnetic insulator (FMI), yttrium iron garnet (YIG or Y3Fe5O12). Proximity-induced butterfly and square-shaped magnetoresistance loops are observed by magneto-transport measurements with out-of-plane and in-plane fields, respectively, and can be correlated with the magnetization of the YIG substrate. More importantly, a magnetic signal from the Bi2Se3 up to 130 K is clearly observed by magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements. Our results demonstrate the proximity-induced TI magnetism at higher temperatures, an important step toward room-temperature application of TI-based spintronic devices.

Scale-invariant quantum anomalous Hall effect in magnetic topological insulators beyond the two-dimensional limit.

We investigate the quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) and related chiral transport in the millimeter-size (Cr(0.12)Bi(0.26)Sb(0.62))2Te3 films. With high sample quality and robust magnetism at low temperatures, the quantized Hall conductance of e²/h is found to persist even when the film thickness is beyond the two-dimensional (2D) hybridization limit. Meanwhile, the Chern insulator-featured chiral edge conduction is manifested by the nonlocal transport measurements. In contrast to the 2D hybridized thin film, an additional weakly field-dependent longitudinal resistance is observed in the ten-quintuple-layer film, suggesting the influence of the film thickness on the dissipative edge channel in the QAHE regime. The extension of the QAHE into the three-dimensional thickness region addresses the universality of this quantum transport phenomenon and motivates the exploration of new QAHE phases with tunable Chern numbers. In addition, the observation of scale-invariant dissipationless chiral propagation on a macroscopic scale makes a major stride towards ideal low-power interconnect applications.

Superlattice of Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanodots and nanolayers for spintronics application.

Fe(x)Ge(1-x) superlattices with two types of nanostructures, i.e. nanodots and nanolayers, were successfully fabricated using low-temperature molecular beam epitaxy. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterization clearly shows that both the Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanodots and nanolayers exhibit a lattice-coherent structure with the surrounding Ge matrix without any metallic precipitations or secondary phases. The magnetic measurement reveals the nature of superparamagnetism in Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanodots, while showing the absence of superparamagnetism in Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanolayers. Magnetotransport measurements show distinct magnetoresistance (MR) behavior, i.e. a negative to positive MR transition in Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanodots and only positive MR in nanolayers, which could be due to a competition between the orbital MR and spin-dependent scatterings. Our results open a new growth strategy for engineering Fe(x)Ge(1-x) nanostructures to facilitate the development of Ge-based spintronics and magnetoelectronics devices.

Direct atom-by-atom chemical identification of nanostructures and defects of topological insulators.

We present a direct atom-by-atom chemical identification of the nanostructures and defects of topological insulators (TIs) with a state-of-the-art atomic mapping technology. Combining this technique and density function theory calculations, we identify and explain the layer chemistry evolution of Bi(2)Te(3­x)Se(x) ternary TIs. We also reveal a long neglected but crucially important extended defect found to be universally present in Bi(2)Te(3) films, the seven-layer Bi(3)Te(4) nanolamella acceptors. Intriguingly, this defect is found to locally pull down the conduction band, leading to local n-type conductivity, despite being an acceptor which pins the Fermi energy near the valence band maximum. This nanolamella may explain inconsistencies in measured conduction type as well as open up a new route to manipulate bulk carrier concentration. Our work may pave the way to more thoroughly understand and tailor the nature of the bulk, as well as secure controllable bulk states for future applications in quantum computing and dissipationless devices.

Competing weak localization and weak antilocalization in ultrathin topological insulators.

We demonstrate evidence of a surface gap opening in topological insulator (TI) thin films of (Bi(0.57)Sb(0.43))(2)Te(3) below six quintuple layers through transport and scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements. By effective tuning the Fermi level via gate-voltage control, we unveil a striking competition between weak localization and weak antilocalization at low magnetic fields in nonmagnetic ultrathin films, possibly owing to the change of the net Berry phase. Furthermore, when the Fermi level is swept into the surface gap of ultrathin samples, the overall unitary behaviors are revealed at higher magnetic fields, which are in contrast to the pure WAL signals obtained in thicker films. Our findings show an exotic phenomenon characterizing the gapped TI surface states and point to the future realization of quantum spin Hall effect and dissipationless TI-based applications.

Manipulating surface-related ferromagnetism in modulation-doped topological insulators.

A new class of devices based on topological insulators (TI) can be achieved by the direct engineering of the time-reversal-symmetry (TRS) protected surface states. In the meantime, a variety of interesting phenomena are also expected when additional ferromagnetism is introduced to the original topological order. In this Letter, we report the magnetic responses from the magnetically modulation-doped (Bi(z)Sb(1-z))2Te3/Cr(x)(Bi(y)Sb(1-y))2Te3 bilayer films. By electrically tuning the Fermi level across the Dirac point, we show that the top TI surface carriers can effectively mediate the magnetic impurities and generate robust ferromagnetic order. More importantly, such surface magneto-electric effects can be either enhanced or suppressed, depending on the magnetic interaction range inside the TI heterostructures. The manipulation of surface-related ferromagnetism realized in our modulation-doped TI device is important for the realization of TRS-breaking topological physics, and it may also lead to new applications of TI-based multifunctional heterostructures.

Separation of top and bottom surface conduction in Bi2Te3 thin films.

Quantum spin Hall (QSH) systems are insulating in the bulk with gapless edges or surfaces that are topologically protected and immune to nonmagnetic impurities or geometric perturbations. Although the QSH effect has been realized in the HgTe/CdTe system, it has not been accomplished in normal 3D topological insulators. In this work, we demonstrate a separation of two surface conductions (top/bottom) in epitaxially grown Bi(2)Te(3) thin films through gate dependent Shubnikov-de Haas (SdH) oscillations. By sweeping the gate voltage, only the Fermi level of the top surface is tuned while that of the bottom surface remains unchanged due to strong electric field screening effects arising from the high dielectric constant of Bi(2)Te(3). In addition, the bulk conduction can be modulated from n- to p-type with a varying gate bias. Our results on the surface control hence pave a way for the realization of QSH effect in topological insulators which requires a selective control of spin transports on the top/bottom surfaces.

Surface-dominated conduction in a 6 nm thick Bi2Se3 thin film.

We report a direct observation of surface dominated conduction in an intrinsic Bi(2)Se(3) thin film with a thickness of six quintuple layers grown on lattice-matched CdS (0001) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations from the topological surface states suggest that the Fermi level falls inside the bulk band gap and is 53 ± 5 meV above the Dirac point, which is in agreement with 70 ± 20 meV obtained from scanning tunneling spectroscopies. Our results demonstrate a great potential of producing genuine topological insulator devices using Dirac Fermions of the surface states, when the film thickness is pushed to nanometer range.

Gate-controlled surface conduction in Na-doped Bi2Te3 topological insulator nanoplates.

Exploring exciting and exotic physics, scientists are pursuing practical device applications for topological insulators. The Dirac-like surface states in topological insulators are protected by the time-reversal symmetry, which naturally forbids backscattering events during the carrier transport process, and therefore offers promising applications in dissipationless spintronic devices. Although considerable efforts have been devoted to controlling their surface conduction, limited work has been focused on tuning surface states and bulk carriers in Bi(2)Te(3) nanostructures by external field. Here we report gate-tunable surface conduction in Na-doped Bi(2)Te(3) topological insulator nanoplates. Significantly, by applying external gate voltages, such topological insulators can be tuned from p-type to n-type. Our results render a promise in finding novel topological insulators with enhanced surface states.

Room-Temperature Gate-Tunable Nonreciprocal Charge Transport in Lattice-Matched InSb/CdTe Heterostructures.

Symmetry manipulation can be used to effectively tailor the physical order in solid-state systems. With the breaking of both the inversion and time-reversal symmetries, nonreciprocal magneto-transport may arise in nonmagnetic systems to enrich spin-orbit effects. Here, the observation of unidirectional magnetoresistance (UMR) in lattice-matched InSb/CdTe films is investigated up to room temperature. Benefiting from the strong built-in electric field of 0.13 V nm-1 in the heterojunction region, the resulting Rashba-type spin-orbit coupling and quantum confinement result in a distinct sinusoidal UMR signal with a nonreciprocal coefficient that is 1-2 orders of magnitude larger than most non-centrosymmetric materials at 298 K. Moreover, this heterostructure configuration enables highly efficient gate tuning of the rectification response, wherein the UMR amplitude is enhanced by 40%. The results of this study advocate the use of narrow-bandgap semiconductor-based hybrid systems with robust spin textures as suitable platforms for the pursuit of controllable chiral spin-orbit applications.

Thickness-Driven Quantum Anomalous Hall Phase Transition in Magnetic Topological Insulator Thin Films.

The quantized version of the anomalous Hall effect realized in magnetic topological insulators (MTIs) has great potential for the development of topological quantum physics and low-power electronic/spintronic applications. Here we report the thickness-tailored quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect in Cr-doped (Bi,Sb)2Te3 thin films by tuning the system across the two-dimensional (2D) limit. In addition to the Chern number-related QAH phase transition, we also demonstrate that the induced hybridization gap plays an indispensable role in determining the ground magnetic state of the MTIs; namely, the spontaneous magnetization owing to considerable Van Vleck spin susceptibility guarantees the zero-field QAH state with unitary scaling law in thick samples, while the quantization of the Hall conductance can only be achieved with the assistance of external magnetic fields in ultrathin films. The modulation of topology and magnetism through structural engineering may provide useful guidance for the pursuit of other QAH-based phase diagrams and functionalities.