Soft-Magnetic Skyrmions Induced by Surface-State Coupling in an Intrinsic Ferromagnetic Topological Insulator Sandwich Structure.

A magnetic skyrmion induced on a ferromagnetic topological insulator (TI) is a real-space manifestation of the chiral spin texture in the momentum space and can be a carrier for information processing by manipulating it in tailored structures. Here, a sandwich structure containing two layers of a self-assembled ferromagnetic septuple-layer TI, Mn(Bi1-xSbx)2Te4 (MnBST), separated by quintuple layers of TI, (Bi1-xSbx)2Te3 (BST), is fabricated and skyrmions are observed through the topological Hall effect in an intrinsic magnetic topological insulator for the first time. The thickness of BST spacer layer is crucial in controlling the coupling between the gapped topological surface states in the two MnBST layers to stabilize the skyrmion formation. The homogeneous, highly ordered arrangement of the Mn atoms in the septuple-layer MnBST leads to a strong exchange interaction therein, which makes the skyrmions "soft magnetic". This would open an avenue toward a topologically robust rewritable magnetic memory.

Weak Antilocalization at the Atomic-Scale Limit of Metal Film Thickness.

Creation of the 2D metallic layers with the thickness as small as a few atomic layers and investigation of their properties are interesting and challenging tasks of the modern condensed-matter physics. One of the possible ways to grow such layers resides in the synthesis of the so-called metal-induced reconstructions on silicon (i.e., silicon substrates covered with ordered metal films of monolayer or submonolayer thickness). The 2D Au-Tl compound on Si(111) surface having [Formula: see text] periodicity belongs to the family of the reconstructions incorporating heavy-metal atoms with a strong spin-orbit coupling (SOC). In such systems, strong SOC results in the spin-splitting of surface-state bands due to the Rashba effect, the occurrence of which was experimentally proved. Another remarkable consequence of a strong SOC that manifests itself in the transport properties is a weak antilocalization (WAL) effect, which has never been explored in the metal layers of atomic thickness. In the present study, the transport and magnetotransport properties of the 2D Au-Tl compound on Si(111) surface were investigated at low temperatures down to ∼2.0 K. The compound was proved to show behavior of the 2D nearly free electron gas system with metallic conduction, as indicated by Ioffe-Regel criterion. It demonstrates the WAL effect which is interpreted in the framework of Hikami-Larkin-Nagaoka theory, and possible mechanisms of the electron decoherence are discussed. Bearing in mind that besides the (Au, Tl)/Si(111)[Formula: see text] system, there are many other ordered atomic-layer metal films on silicon differing by composition, structure, strength of SOC, and spin texture, which provide a promising area for prospective investigations of the WAL effect at the atomic-scale limit when the film thickness is less than the electron wavelength.

Interplay between magnetic order and electronic band structure in ultrathin GdGe2 metalloxene films.

Dimensionality can strongly influence the magnetic structure of solid systems. Here, we predict theoretically and confirm experimentally that the antiferromagnetic (AFM) ground state of bulk gadolinium germanide metalloxene, which has a quasi-layered defective GdGe2 structure, is preserved in the ultrathin film limit. Ab initio calculations demonstrate that ultrathin GdGe2 films present in-plane intra-layer ferromagnetic coupling and AFM inter-layer coupling in the ground state. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy finds the AFM-induced band splitting expected for the 2 and 3 GdGe2 trilayer (TL) films, which disappear above the Néel temperature. The comparative analysis of isostructural ultrathin DyGe2 and GdSi2 films confirms the magnetic origin of the observed band splitting. These findings are in contrast with the recent report of ferromagnetism in ultrathin metalloxene films, which we ascribe to the presence of uncompensated magnetic moments.

Unidirectional Nano-modulated Binding and Electron Scattering in Epitaxial Borophene.

A complex interplay between the crystal structure and the electron behavior within borophene renders this material an intriguing 2D system, with many of its electronic properties still undiscovered. Experimental insight into those properties is additionally hampered by the limited capabilities of the established synthesis methods, which, in turn, inhibits the realization of potential borophene applications. In this multimethod study, photoemission spectroscopies and scanning probe techniques complemented by theoretical calculations have been used to investigate the electronic characteristics of a high-coverage, single-layer borophene on the Ir(111) substrate. Our results show that the binding of borophene to Ir(111) exhibits pronounced one-dimensional modulation and transforms borophene into a nanograting. The scattering of photoelectrons from this structural grating gives rise to the replication of the electronic bands. In addition, the binding modulation is reflected in the chemical reactivity of borophene and gives rise to its inhomogeneous aging effect. Such aging is easily reset by dissolving boron atoms in iridium at high temperature, followed by their reassembly into a fresh atomically thin borophene mesh. Besides proving electron-grating capabilities of the boron monolayer, our data provide comprehensive insight into the electronic properties of epitaxial borophene which is vital for further examination of other boron systems of reduced dimensionality.

Gold Interlayer Promotes Superconductivity in Single and Double Atomic Pb Layers on Si(100).

Introducing an atomic Au monolayer between a Pb film and a Si(100) substrate allows us to fabricate Pb films with single- and double-atom thicknesses. The Pb films have a 2D square-lattice structure with the 1D atomic chains of Pb adatoms on their top, forming Si(100)1 × 7-(Pb, Au) and Si(100)5 × 1-(Pb, Au) superstructures for single and double atomic Pb layers, respectively. Their common characteristic feature is the occurrence of bundles of quasi-1D metallic bands. Transport measurements showed that samples with a Au interlayer demonstrate enhanced superconductor properties, as compared to Pb layers grown on the bare Si(100) surface. Toward improved superconductor properties, the (Pb, Au)/Si(100) system successively avoids risks associated with possible intermixing between adsorbate layers and substrate, as well as with possible Peierls transition into an insulator state, typical for the 1D systems. This finding opens new ways to control low-dimensional superconductivity at the atomic-scale limit.

Metal Sheet of Atomic Thickness Embedded in Silicon.

The controlled confinement of the metallic delta-layer to a single atomic plane has so far remained an unsolved problem. In the present study, the delta-type structure with atomic sheet of NiSi2 silicide embedded into a crystalline Si matrix has been fabricated using room-temperature overgrowth of a Si film onto the Tl/NiSi2/Si(111) atomic sandwich in ultrahigh vacuum. Tl atoms segregate at the growing Si film surface, and the 1.5-3.0 nm thick epitaxially crystalline Si layer forms atop the NiSi2 sheet. Confinement of the NiSi2 layer to a single atomic plane has been directly confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. The NiSi2 delta-layer demonstrates a p-type conductivity associated with the electronic transport through the two hole-like and one electron-like interface-state bands. The basic structural and electronic properties of the NiSi2 delta-layer remain after keeping the sample in air for one year.

Synthesis of two-dimensional Tl(x)Bi(1-x) compounds and Archimedean encoding of their atomic structure.

Crystalline atomic layers on solid surfaces are composed of a single building block, unit cell, that is copied and stacked together to form the entire two-dimensional crystal structure. However, it appears that this is not an unique possibility. We report here on synthesis and characterization of the one-atomic-layer-thick Tl(x)Bi(1-x) compounds which display quite a different arrangement. It represents a quasi-periodic tiling structures that are built by a set of tiling elements as building blocks. Though the layer is lacking strict periodicity, it shows up as an ideally-packed tiling of basic elements without any skips or halting. The two-dimensional Tl(x)Bi(1-x) compounds were formed by depositing Bi onto the Tl-covered Si(111) surface where Bi atoms substitute appropriate amount of Tl atoms. Atomic structure of each tiling element as well as arrangement of Tl(x)Bi(1-x) compounds were established in a detail. Electronic properties and spin texture of the selected compounds having periodic structures were characterized. The shown example demonstrates possibility for the formation of the exotic low-dimensional materials via unusual growth mechanisms.

A strategy to create spin-split metallic bands on silicon using a dense alloy layer.

To exploit Rashba effect in a 2D electron gas on silicon surface for spin transport, it is necessary to have surface reconstruction with spin-split metallic surface-state bands. However, metals with strong spin-orbit coupling (e.g., Bi, Tl, Sb, Pt) induce reconstructions on silicon with almost exclusively spin-split insulating bands. We propose a strategy to create spin-split metallic bands using a dense 2D alloy layer containing a metal with strong spin-orbit coupling and another metal to modify the surface reconstruction. Here we report two examples, i.e., alloying reconstruction with Na and Tl/Si(111)1 × 1 reconstruction with Pb. The strategy provides a new paradigm for creating metallic surface state bands with various spin textures on silicon and therefore enhances the possibility to integrate fascinating and promising capabilities of spintronics with current semiconductor technology.