arXiv subjects

Jinfeng Jia

Publications and source records attributed to Jinfeng Jia.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2025

Coexistence of unconventional spin-orbit torque and in-plane Hall effect in a single ferromagnetic layer

The symmetry of a material fundamentally governs its spin transport properties. While unconventional spin transport phenomena have been predominantly explored in low-symmetry systems (e.g., $C_{1v}$ symmetry), high-symmetry crystals--which constitute the majority of industry-compatible materials--are generally expected to exhibit only conventional spin-transport behavior. Here, we report the coexistence of two unconventional spin transport effects, the crystal spin-orbit torque (CSOT) and the crystal in-plane Hall effect (CIHE), in a CoPt single ferromagnetic layer with $C_{3v}$ symmetry. Leveraging the CSOT, we achieve nearly 100% field-free perpendicular magnetization switching in a 6 nm CoPt layer at room temperature. Simultaneously, the CIHE observed in this material exhibits nearly identical dependencies on both current angle and growth temperature as the CSOT. Symmetry analysis confirms that both effects share a common physical origin. Our work not only establishes CoPt as a high-performance spin-orbit material, but also demonstrates that unconventional spin transport can be realized in high-symmetry systems, thereby opening a broad pathway for their application in practical spintronics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Stacking-orientation and twist-angle control on integer and fractional Chern insulators in moiré rhombohedral graphene

Rhombohedral-stacked multilayer graphene aligned with hexagonal boron nitride has emerged as an excellent platform for investigating exotic quantum phenomena arising from the interplay between electron correlations and nontrivial topology. However, the microscopic mechanism governing the emergence of both the integer and fractional Chern insulator states in this system remains an open question. In this work, we systematically investigate the electrical transport properties of RMG/hBN moiré devices with controlled alignment orientations and twist angles. We demonstrate that alignment orientation strongly modulates correlated phenomena in the moiré-proximal regime, while having negligible influence on the formation of integer and fractional Chern insulators in the moiré-distant regime. Instead, the moiré periodicity, tuned by the twist angle, serves as the key parameter controlling the stability of these correlated topological states in the moiré-distant regime. Furthermore, in the moiré-proximal regime of one specific alignment, we observe anomalous Hall effect and a variety of competing phases near ν = 1, including integer Chern insulator states, extended Chern insulator states, and trivial insulators, whose stability is highly sensitive to both the applied displacement electric field and magnetic field. Our results underscore the critical role of stacking-alignment and twist-angle engineering in exploring novel quantum states based on rhombohedral-stacked multilayer graphene moiré systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Fabrication and Characterization of the Moiré surface state on a topological insulator

A Moire superlattice on the topological insulator surface is predicted to exhibit many novel properties but has not been experimentally realized. Here, we developed a two-step growth method to successfully fabricate a topological insulator Sb2Te3 thin film with a Moire superlattice, which is generated by a twist of the topmost layer via molecular beam epitaxy. The established Moire topological surface state is characterized by scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. By application of a magnetic field, new features in Landau levels arise on the Moire region compared to the pristine surface of Sb2Te3, which makes the system a promising platform for pursuing next-generation electronics. Notably, the growth method, which circumvents contamination and the induced interface defects in the manual fabrication method, can be widely applied to other van der Waals materials for fabricating Moire superlattices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Quantum-size effect induced Andreev bound states in ultrathin metallic islands proximitized by a superconductor

While Andreev bound states (ABSs) have been realized in engineered superconducting junctions, their direct observation in normal metal/superconductor heterostructures-enabled by quantum confinement-remains experimentally elusive. Here, we report the detection of ABSs in ultrathin metallic islands (Bi, Ag, and SnTe) grown on the s-wave superconductor NbN. Using high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy, we clearly reveal in-gap ABSs with energies symmetric about the Fermi level. While the energies of these states show no position dependence, their wave functions exhibit spatial oscillations, demonstrating a quantum size effect. Both the energy levels and spatial distribution of the ABSs can be reproduced by our effective model in which a metallic island is coupled to the superconducting substrate via the proximity effect. We demonstrate that the coupling strength plays a critical role in determining the ABS energies. Our work introduces a novel physical platform for implementing ABSs, which hold promise for significant device applications.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Visualization and manipulation of four-leaf clover-shaped electronic state in cuprate

High-Tc superconductivity in cuprates arises from carrier doping of an antiferromagnetic Mott insulator. Associated with these changes are spectral-weight transfers from the high-energy to low-energy, giving rise to a variety of intriguing electronic phenomena. In this study, for the first time, we discovered a 2a0 sized four-leaf clover-shaped (FLC) electronic state at low-energy, accompanied with the emergence of a characteristic "kink" around 16meV. With increasing doping, the number of FLC pattern decreases and ultimately vanishes in the overdoped region. Remarkably, we achieved real-time electric-field manipulation of this FLC state, through innovative in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy probe. This novel FLC state may not only redefine our understanding of precursor states of pairing, but also reveals its crucial role as a tunable electronic phase in high-Tc superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Evidence of competing ground states between fractional Chern insulator and antiferromagnetism in moiré MoTe2

Two-dimensional moire materials present unprecedented opportunities to explore quantum phases of matter arising from the interplay of band topology and strong correlations.One of the most striking examples is the recent observation of fractional quantum anomalous Hall (FQAH) effect in twisted bilayer MoTe$_2$ (tMoTe2) with relatively large twist angles(~3.7deg-3.9deg). The electronic ground states are usually expected to be sensitive to the twist angle, as the twist angle determines the electron bandwidth and correlation strength in the moire system. Here, we report the observation of unexpected competing magnetic ground states in tMoTe2 moire superlattice, on which balance can be tipped by both twist angle and electric field (E). Specifically, we observed anomalous antiferromagnetic (AFM) ground states with zero Hall resistance at both v_h=1 and 2/3, at intermediate twist angles ~3deg. The AFM orders are suppressed by applying vertical E, and emergent ferromagnetism accompanied by integer Chern insulator (ICI) or fractional Chern insulator (FCI) states are observed near the critical E (E_c) of moire superlattice symmetry transition. Our results demonstrate tMoTe2 as a fascinating platform for exploring unexpected correlated phases with nontrivial topology and fractional excitations and point to electric-field-controlled ultralow-power spin-valleytronic devices.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Imaging moiré flat bands and Wigner molecular crystals in twisted bilayer MoTe2

Two-dimensional semiconducting moiré materials have emerged as a highly tunable platform for exploring novel quantum phenomena. Recently, tMoTe2 has attracted significant attentions due to the observation of the long-sought fractional quantum anomalous Hall effect. However, a comprehensive microscopic understanding of the tMoTe2 moiré superlattice remains elusive. Here, we report STM/STS studies in dual-gated tMoTe2 moiré devices with twist angles ranging from 2.3 to 3.8 deg. The device consists of two independent back-gates, one enables an ohmic contact for tMoTe2, while the other fine-tunes the Fermi level of tMoTe2. This dual-gate control enables direct measurement of the electronic structure in tMoTe2 under varied displacement fields and moiré filling factors, by fine tuning the gate voltage and the tip bias. Our STS spectra and spatial imaging reveal that the low-energy moiré flat bands are predominantly localized in the XM and MX regions of the moiré superlattice. At zero E-field, these bands form a honeycomb lattice with non-trivial topology, whereas an applied E-field drives a transition into two distinct triangular lattices with trivial topology. The spatial distributions align with large-scale first-principle calculations, demonstrating that the topological flat bands arise from the K-valley hybridization between the top and bottom MoTe2 layers. Furthermore, we show that the effective moiré potential depth can be controlled via gate and tip biases. At sufficient potential depths, we observe the emergence of Wigner molecular crystals, transitioning MX triangular lattice into a Kagome lattice at MX moiré filling factor 3. These results elucidate the microscopic origin of topological flat bands in tMoTe2 and demonstrate electric-field control of topology and correlated electronic orders, paving the way to engineer exotic quantum phases in moiré simulators.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Density-dependent spin susceptibility and effective mass in monolayer MoSe2

Atomically thin MoSe2 is a promising platform for investigating quantum phenomena due to its large effective mass, high crystal quality, and strong spin-orbit coupling. In this work, we demonstrate a triple-gate device design with bismuth contacts, enabling reliable ohmic contact down to low electron densities, with a maximum Hall mobility of approximately 22,000 cm2/Vs. Low-temperature transport measurements illustrate metal-insulator transitions, and density-dependent quantum oscillation sequences. Enhanced spin susceptibility and density-dependent effective mass are observed, attributed to interaction effects and valley polarization. These findings establish monolayer MoSe2 as a versatile platform for further exploring interaction-driven quantum states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Switchable Chern insulator, isospin competitions and charge density waves in rhombohedral graphene moire superlattices

Graphene-based moire superlattices provide a versatile platform for exploring novel correlated and topological electronic states, driven by enhanced Coulomb interactions within flat bands. The intrinsic tunability of graphene s multiple degrees of freedom enables precise control over these complex quantum phases. In this study, we observe a range of competing phases and their transitions in rhombohedrally stacked hexalayer graphene on hexagonal boron nitride (r-6G/hBN) moire superlattices. When electrons are polarized away from the moire superlattice, we firstly identify a Chern insulator with reversible Chern numbers at v = 1 (one electron per moire cell), attributed to the competition between bulk and edge magnetizations.Then, we detect transitions between three distinct insulating states at v = 2, driven by vertical displacement field D and vertical magnetic field B. These insulating phases are distinguished as spin-antiferromagnetic, spin-polarized, and valley-polarized insulators, based on their responses to parallel and perpendicular magnetic fields. When electrons are polarized toward the moire superlattice, in a device with large twist angle, insulating states appear at v = 1/3 and 2/3 at zero magnetic field, and v = 1/2 in a magnetic field. Our findings reveal a rich interplay of charge, isospin, topology and magnetic field in rhombohedral graphene moire superlattices.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Real-space study of zero-field correlation in tetralayer rhombohedral graphene

Rhombohedral graphene (RG) has emerged as a promising platform for exploring exotic quantum phenomena, such as quantum magnetism, unconventional superconductivity, and fractional quantum anomalous Hall effects. Despite its potential, atomic-scale investigations of RG remain limited, hindering a detailed microscopic understanding of the origins of these correlated states. In this study, we employ scanning probe microscopy and spectroscopy to probe the intrinsic electronic states in trilayer and tetralayer RG. We identify a correlated insulating state with a 17 meV gap at the charge neutrality point in tetralayer RG, which is absent in the trilayer configuration. This gap is suppressed by applying a perpendicular magnetic field or doping the charge carrier density and does not exhibit inter-valley coherence patterns. We attribute this phenomenon to a symmetry-broken layer antiferromagnetic state, characterized by ferrimagnetic ordering in the outermost layers and antiferromagnetic coupling between them. To further investigate this magnetic correlated state, we conduct local scattering experiments. Within the correlated regime, a bound state emerges around a non-magnetic impurity but is absent near magnetic impurities, suggesting that non-magnetic doping induces a spin texture in the ferrimagnetic surface layers. Outside the correlated regime, Friedel oscillations are observed, allowing precise determination of the band dispersion in tetralayer RG. These findings provide atomic-scale evidences of zero-field correlations in RG and may be extended to study other exotic phases in RG.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Interplay between topology and correlations in the second moiré band of twisted bilayer MoTe2

Topological flat bands formed in two-dimensional lattice systems offer unique opportunity to study the fractional phases of matter in the absence of an external magnetic field. Celebrated examples include fractional quantum anomalous Hall (FQAH) effects and fractional topological insulators. Recently, FQAH effects have been experimentally realized in both the twisted bilayer MoTe2 (tMoTe2) system and the rhombohedral stacked multilayer graphene/hBN moiré systems. To date, experimental studies mainly focus on the first moiré flat band, except a very recent work that studied novel transport properties in higher moiré bands of a 2.1° tMoTe2 device. Here, we present the systematical transport study of approximately 3° tMoTe2 devices, especially for the second moiré band. At ν = -2 and -4, time-reversal-symmetric single and double quantum spin Hall states formed, consistent with the previous observation in 2.1° tMoTe2 device. On the other hand, we observed ferromagnetism in the second moiré band, and a Chern insulator state driven by out-of-plane magnetic fields at ν = -3. At ν = -2.2 to -2.7, finite temperature resistivity minimum with 1/T scaling at low temperatures, and large out-of-plane negative magnetoresistance have been observed. Applying out-of-plane electric field can induce quantum phase transitions at both integer and fractional filling factors. Our studies pave the way for realizing tunable topological states and other unexpected magnetic phases beyond the first moiré flat band based on twisted MoTe2 platform.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Topological surface state dominated nonlinear transverse response and microwave rectification at room temperature

Nonlinear Hall effect (NLHE) offers a novel means of uncovering symmetry and topological properties in quantum materials, holding promise for exotic (opto)electronic applications such as microwave rectification and THz detection. The BCD-independent NLHE could exhibit a robust response even at room temperature, which is highly desirable for practical applications. However, in materials with bulk inversion symmetry, the coexistence of bulk and surface conducting channels often leads to a suppressed NLHE and complex thickness-dependent behavior. Here, we report the observation of room-temperature nonlinear transverse response in 3D topological insulator Bi2Te3 thin films, whose electrical transport properties are dominated by topological surface state (TSS). By varying the thickness of Bi2Te3 epitaxial films from 7 nm to 50 nm, we found that the nonlinear transverse response increases with thickness from 7 nm to 25 nm and remains almost constant above 25 nm. This is consistent with the thickness-dependent basic transport properties, including conductance, carrier density, and mobility, indicating a pure and robust TSS-dominated linear and nonlinear transport in thick (>25 nm) Bi2Te3 films. The weaker nonlinear transverse response in Bi2Te3 below 25 nm was attributed to Te deficiency and poorer crystallinity. By utilizing the TSS-dominated electrical second harmonic generation, we successfully achieved the microwave rectification from 0.01 to 16.6 GHz in 30 nm and bulk Bi2Te3. Our work demonstrated the room temperature nonlinear transverse response in a paradigm topological insulator, addressing the tunability of the topological second harmonic response by thickness engineering.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

Large-scale simulations of vortex Majorana zero modes in topological crystalline insulators

Topological crystalline insulators are known to support multiple Majorana zero modes (MZMs) at a single vortex, their hybridization is forbidden by a magnetic mirror symmetry $M_T$. Due to the limited energy resolution of scanning tunneling microscopes and the very small energy spacing of trivial bound states, it remains challenging to directly probe and demonstrate the existence of multiple MZMs. In this work, we propose to demonstrate the existence of MZMs by studying the hybridization of multiple MZMs in a symmetry breaking field. The different responses of trivial bound states and MZMs can be inferred from their spatial distribution in the vortex. However, the theoretical simulations are very demanding since it requires an extremely large system in real space. By utilizing the kernel polynomial method, we can efficiently simulate large lattices with over $10^8$ orbitals to compute the local density of states which bridges the gap between theoretical studies based on minimal models and experimental measurements. We show that the spatial distribution of MZMs and trivial vortex bound states indeed differs drastically in tilted magnetic fields. The zero-bias peak elongates when the magnetic field preserves $M_T$, while it splits when $M_T$ is broken, giving rise to an anisotropic magnetic response. Since the bulk of SnTe are metallic, we also study the robustness of MZMs against the bulk states, and clarify when can the MZMs produce a pronounced anisotropic magnetic response.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2024

Atomic-Scale Imaging of Fractional Spinon Quasiparticles in Open-Shell Triangulene Spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ Chains

The emergence of spinon quasiparticles, which carry spin but lack charge, is a hallmark of collective quantum phenomena in low-dimensional quantum spin systems. While the existence of spinons has been demonstrated through scattering spectroscopy in ensemble samples, real-space imaging of these quasiparticles within individual spin chains has remained elusive. In this study, we construct individual Heisenberg antiferromagnetic spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ chains using open-shell [2]triangulene molecules as building blocks. Each [2]triangulene unit, owing to its sublattice imbalance, hosts a net spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ in accordance with Lieb's theorem, and these spins are antiferromagnetically coupled within covalent chains with a coupling strength of $J = 45$ meV. Through scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy, we probe the spin states, excitation gaps, and their spatial excitation weights within covalent spin chains of varying lengths with atomic precision. Our investigation reveals that the excitation gap decreases as the chain length increases, extrapolating to zero for long chains, consistent with Haldane's gapless prediction. Moreover, inelastic tunneling spectroscopy reveals an m-shaped energy dispersion characteristic of confined spinon quasiparticles in a one-dimensional quantum box. These findings establish a promising strategy for exploring the unique properties of excitation quasiparticles and their broad implications for quantum information.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

Tunable superconductivity in electron- and hole-doped Bernal bilayer graphene

Graphene-based, high quality two-dimensional electronic systems have emerged as a highly tunable platform for studying superconductivity. Specifically, superconductivity has been observed in both electron-doped and hole-doped twisted graphene moire systems, whereas in crystalline graphene systems, superconductivity has so far only been observed in hole-doped rhombohedral trilayer and hole-doped Bernal bilayer graphene (BBG). Recently, enhanced superconductivity has been demonstrated in BBG due to the proximity with a monolayer WSe2. Here, we report the observation of superconductivity and a series of flavor-symmetry-breaking phases in both electron- and hole-doped BBG/WSe2 device by electrostatic doping. The strength of the observed superconductivity is tunable by applied vertical electric fields. The maximum Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition temperature for the electron- and hole-doped superconductivity is about 210 mK and 400 mK, respectively. Superconductivities emerge only when applied electric fields drive BBG electron or hole wavefunctions toward the WSe2 layer, underscoring the importance of the WSe2 layer in the observed superconductivity. We find the hole-doped superconductivity violates the Pauli paramagnetic limit, consistent with an Ising-like superconductor. In contrast, the electron-doped superconductivity obeys the Pauli limit, even though the proximity induced Ising spin-orbit coupling is also notable in the conduction band. Our findings highlight the rich physics associated with the conduction band in BBG, paving the way for further studies into the superconducting mechanisms of crystalline graphene and the development of novel superconductor devices based on BBG.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2024

Ultra-Long Homochiral Graphene Nanoribbons Grown Within h-BN Stacks for High-Performance Electronics

Van der Waals encapsulation of two-dimensional materials within hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) stacks has proven to be a promising way to create ultrahigh-performance electronic devices. However, contemporary approaches for achieving van der Waals encapsulation, which involve artificial layer stacking using mechanical transfer techniques, are difficult to control, prone to contamination, and unscalable. Here, we report on the transfer-free direct growth of high-quality graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) within h-BN stacks. The as-grown embedded GNRs exhibit highly desirable features being ultralong (up to 0.25 mm), ultranarrow ( < 5 nm), and homochiral with zigzag edges. Our atomistic simulations reveal that the mechanism underlying the embedded growth involves ultralow GNR friction when sliding between AA'-stacked h-BN layers. Using the grown structures, we demonstrate the transfer-free fabrication of embedded GNR field-effect devices that exhibit excellent performance at room temperature with mobilities of up to 4,600 $cm^{2} V^{-1} s^{-1}$ and on-off ratios of up to $10^{6}$. This paves the way to the bottom-up fabrication of high-performance electronic devices based on embedded layered materials.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

Observation of Chern insulator in crystalline ABCA-tetralayer graphene with spin-orbit coupling

Degeneracies in multilayer graphene, including spin, valley, and layer degrees of freedom, are susceptible to Coulomb interactions and can result into rich broken-symmetry states. In this work, we report a ferromagnetic state in charge neutral ABCA-tetralayer graphene driven by proximity-induced spin-orbit coupling from adjacent WSe2. The ferromagnetic state is further identified as a Chern insulator with Chern number of 4, and its Hall resistance reaches 78% and 100% quantization of h/4e2 at zero and 0.4 tesla, respectively. Three broken-symmetry insulating states, layer-antiferromagnet, Chern insulator and layer-polarized insulator and their transitions can be continuously tuned by the vertical displacement field. Remarkably, the magnetic order of the Chern insulator can be switched by three knobs, including magnetic field, electrical doping, and vertical displacement field.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

Topological edge and corner states in Bi fractals on InSb

Topological materials hosting metallic edges characterized by integer quantized conductivity in an insulating bulk have revolutionized our understanding of transport in matter. The topological protection of these edge states is based on symmetries and dimensionality. However, only integer-dimensional models have been classified, and the interplay of topology and fractals, which may have a non-integer dimension, remained largely unexplored. Quantum fractals have recently been engineered in metamaterials, but up to present no topological states were unveiled in fractals realized in real materials. Here, we show theoretically and experimentally that topological edge and corner modes arise in fractals formed upon depositing thin layers of bismuth on an indium antimonide substrate. Scanning tunneling microscopy reveals the appearance of (nearly) zero-energy modes at the corners of Sierpiński triangles, as well as the formation of outer and inner edge modes at higher energies. Unexpectedly, a robust and sharp depleted mode appears at the outer and inner edges of the samples at negative bias voltages. The experimental findings are corroborated by theoretical calculations in the framework of a continuum muffin-tin and a lattice tight-binding model. The stability of the topological features to the introduction of a Rashba spin-orbit coupling and disorder is discussed. This work opens the perspective to novel electronics in real materials at non-integer dimensions with robust and protected topological states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗