Higher Order Topology and Nodal Topological Superconductivity in Fe(Se,Te) Heterostructures

Rui-Xing Zhang; William S. Cole; Xianxin Wu; S. Das Sarma

doi:10.1103/physrevlett.123.167001

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arXiv · 1905.10647

Higher Order Topology and Nodal Topological Superconductivity in Fe(Se,Te) Heterostructures

Rui-Xing Zhang·William S. Cole·Xianxin Wu·S. Das Sarma

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Abstract

We show theoretically that a heterostructure of monolayer FeTe$_{1-x}$Se$_x$ - a superconducting quantum spin Hall material - with a monolayer of FeTe - a bicollinear antiferromagnet - realizes a higher order topological superconductor phase characterized by emergent Majorana zero modes pinned to the sample corners. We provide a minimal effective model for this system, analyze the origin of higher order topology, and fully characterize the topological phase diagram. Despite the conventional s-wave pairing, we find rather surprising emergence of a novel topological nodal superconductor in the phase diagram. Featured by edge-dependent Majorana flat bands, the topological nodal phase is protected by an antiferromagnetic chiral symmetry. We also discuss the experimental feasibility, the estimation of realistic model parameters, and the robustness of the Majorana corner modes against magnetic disorder. Our work provides a new experimentally feasible high-temperature platform for both higher order topology and non-Abelian Majorana physics.

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Rui-Xing Zhang, William S. Cole, Xianxin Wu, S. Das Sarma. 2019-06-12. Higher Order Topology and Nodal Topological Superconductivity in Fe(Se,Te) Heterostructures. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.123.167001

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