Three-Dimensional Real Space Invariants, Obstructed Atomic Insulators and A New Principle for Active Catalytic Sites

Yuanfeng Xu; Luis Elcoro; Guowei Li; Zhi-Da Song; Nicolas Regnault; Qun Yang; Yan Sun; Stuart Parkin; Claudia Felser; B. Andrei Bernevig

arXiv · 2111.02433

Three-Dimensional Real Space Invariants, Obstructed Atomic Insulators and A New Principle for Active Catalytic Sites

Yuanfeng Xu·Luis Elcoro·Guowei Li·Zhi-Da Song·Nicolas Regnault·Qun Yang·Yan Sun·Stuart Parkin·Claudia Felser·B. Andrei Bernevig

View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Topologically trivial insulators come in two kinds: atomic, where the Wannier charge centers (WCCs) are localized on the atoms, and obstructed atomic, where the WCCs are located away from the atoms. The latter, which can exhibit interesting surface states and possibly have much larger band gaps than the topological insulators, have so far not been classified in three-dimensional (3D) crystalline materials. In this paper, we developed the 3D real space invariants (RSIs) for the 1651 Shubnikov space groups with the spin-orbit coupling and provide the full classification of 3D obstructed atomic insulators (OAIs) by the RSIs. We then apply the theory to the entire database of materials on the Topological Quantum Chemistry website and Topological Magnetic Materials website, obtaining all the OAIs so far existing in nature. We find that, out of the 34013 paramagnetic and 296 magnetic topologically trivial insulators, there are 3383 paramagnetic and 30 magnetic OAIs. All of them present a filling anomaly under certain open-boundary conditions and exhibit obstructed surface states (OSSs). We further refine the atomic insulator concept to obtain the orbital-selected OAIs (OOAIs), where the WCC of the system is located at a Wyckoff position occupied by an atom but forms a symmetric representation that does not belong to the outer-shell electrons of the given atom. In such a way, we obtain a further 121 OOAIs. Furthermore, we analyze the catalytic properties of one of the OAIs in a "proof of principle" experiment. By using the single crystal of 2H-MoS2 as a hydrogen evolution catalyst, we directly prove that the catalytic activities arise from the surfaces with OSSs. Additional potential applications of the 3D RSIs and OAIs in, for example, electrochemistry, asymmetric catalysis, superconductivity, and Josephson diode will be discussed.

Explore related subjects

cond-mat.mtrl-sci cond-mat.mes-hall cond-mat.supr-con

Keep this discovery

BibTeX RIS

Yuanfeng Xu, Luis Elcoro, Guowei Li, Zhi-Da Song, Nicolas Regnault, Qun Yang, Yan Sun, Stuart Parkin, Claudia Felser, B. Andrei Bernevig. 2021-11-03. Three-Dimensional Real Space Invariants, Obstructed Atomic Insulators and A New Principle for Active Catalytic Sites. https://arxiv.org/abs/2111.02433

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Measuring chiral phonons

Chiral phonons are quantized vibrations where the atomic motion in a solid breaks improper rotation symmetries. In many cases, chiral phonons possess angular momenta and are therefore selective to circularly polarized light. Both fundamental and applied research efforts on chiral phonons have been gaining increasing attention owing to their importance in a variety of fields including spintronics, spin-selective chemical reactions, thermal transport, quantum information processing and biosensing, where the bi-directional spin-lattice coupling enabled by chiral phonons can be harnessed in new ways, and potentially lead to new functionalities. Thus far, the studies of chiral phonons across diverse materials platforms have evolved largely independently within these fields, but the experimental techniques are often interrelated. In this perspective, we present a detailed description, as well as advantages and disadvantages of the current approaches for experimentally measuring chiral phonons in chiral and achiral materials. We conclude with a discussion of new methods for measuring chiral phonons. Ultimately, this work seeks to offer an experimental guide for systematically investigating the properties of chiral phonons in various materials systems and applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2026

A model of grain growth in UN integrating molecular dynamics, phase-field modeling, and uncertainty quantification

Grain growth kinetics and grain-boundary (GB) properties in uranium mononitride (UN) are investigated through an integrated multiscale framework combining molecular dynamics (MD), phase-field modeling, and surrogate-assisted uncertainty quantification. MD simulations yield GB energies for 27 symmetric tilt boundaries from 0--2000~K, which are consistent with available DFT values. The average GB energy is nearly temperature-independent below 1000~K and increases at higher temperatures. A mechanistic pore-drag model applied to the only available grain growth dataset for actinide nitrides yields a mobility reduction factor of $s \approx 0.93$--$0.99$, statistically indistinguishable from unity, confirming that pore drag is negligible under the experimental conditions. The intrinsic GB mobility is therefore extracted directly from the effective mobility, yielding $M_0 = 2.05\times10^{-15}$~m$^4$/(J$\cdot$s) and $Q_M = 0.89$~eV. Phase-field simulations conducted from 1500--2000~K confirm normal curvature-driven grain growth, with grain size distributions converging to the Hillert-like form. A surrogate-assisted global sensitivity analysis---combining principal component analysis, Gaussian process regression, and Sobol decomposition---reveals that the mobility prefactor $M_0$ dominates output variance at all times, followed by the activation energy $Q_M$, while the GB energy $\gamma$ contributes minimally. These results establish the first quantitative grain growth framework for UN and identify the reduction of uncertainty in $M_0$ and $Q_M$ as the highest-priority target for future experimental efforts.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2026

Silicon Solar Cell Design for >30% Efficiency via Singlet Fission

Singlet fission (SF) materials convert high-energy photons into multiple charge carriers, providing a route to exceed the efficiency limits of single-junction silicon solar cells without many of the complexities of multi-junction tandem designs. Following the first demonstration of an SF-enhanced silicon solar cell in 2025, there is a need to understand how SF materials can be effectively integrated into high-efficiency industrial silicon devices and translated from proof of concept to a manufacturable technology. Using coupled optical and electrical simulations, we assess the efficiency potential of several industrially relevant silicon cell architectures combined with SF materials. Interdigitated back-contact (IBC) cells offer the greatest potential for improvement due to unrestricted front-surface access and can achieve efficiencies exceeding 33%. However, performance is highly sensitive to front-surface passivation quality. Appropriate silicon design, particularly controlled surface doping and fixed interfacial charge, can mitigate recombination losses and relax passivation requirements for ultra-thin exciton-transfer layers.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗