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arXiv · 2105.06439

Bicircular light tuning of magnetic symmetry and topology in Dirac semimetal Cd$_3$As$_2$

Thaís V. Trevisan·Pablo Villar Arribi·Olle Heinonen·Robert-Jan Slager·Peter P. Orth
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Abstract

We show that Floquet engineering using bicircular light (BCL) is a versatile way to control magnetic symmetries and topology in materials. The electric field of BCL, which is a superposition of two circularly polarized light waves with frequencies that are integer multiples of each other, traces out a rose pattern in the polarization plane that can be chosen to break selective symmetries, including spatial inversion. Using a realistic low-energy model, we theoretically demonstrate that the three-dimensional Dirac semimetal Cd$_3$As$_2$ is a promising platform for BCL Floquet engineering. Without strain, BCL irradiation induces a transition to a non-centrosymmetric magnetic Weyl semimetal phase with tunable energy separation between the Weyl nodes. In the presence of strain, we predict the emergence of a magnetic topological crystalline insulator with exotic unpinned surface Dirac states that are protected by a combination of twofold rotation and time-reversal $(2')$ and can be controlled by light.

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Thaís V. Trevisan, Pablo Villar Arribi, Olle Heinonen, Robert-Jan Slager, Peter P. Orth. 2021-05-13. Bicircular light tuning of magnetic symmetry and topology in Dirac semimetal Cd$_3$As$_2$. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.128.066602

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