Strong correlations at topological insulator surfaces and the breakdown of the bulk-boundary correspondence

Manuel J. Schmidt

doi:10.1103/physrevb.86.161110

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arXiv · 1206.2646

Strong correlations at topological insulator surfaces and the breakdown of the bulk-boundary correspondence

Manuel J. Schmidt

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Abstract

The criteria for strong correlations on surfaces of three-dimensional topological insulators are discussed. Usually, the Coulomb repulsion at such surfaces is too weak for driving a phase transition to a strongly correlated regime. I discuss a mechanism and possibilities of its experimental implementation by which the strength of the Coulomb interaction can be tuned over a wide range. In the strongly interacting regime, the surface states are gapped, even though the topological classification of the bulk band structure predicts gapless surface states.

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Manuel J. Schmidt. 2012-06-12. Strong correlations at topological insulator surfaces and the breakdown of the bulk-boundary correspondence. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.86.161110

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