arXiv subjects

Yeryun Cheon

Publications and source records attributed to Yeryun Cheon.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Surface-dominant transport in Weyl semimetal NbAs nanowires for next-generation interconnects

Ongoing demands for smaller and more energy efficient electronic devices necessitate alternative interconnect materials with lower electrical resistivity at reduced dimensions. Despite the emergence of many promising candidates, synthesizing high quality nanostructures remains a major bottleneck in evaluating their performance. Here, we report the successful synthesis of Weyl semimetal NbAs nanowires via thermomechanical nanomolding, achieving single crystallinity and controlled diameters as small as 40 nm. Our NbAs nanowires exhibit a remarkably low room-temperature resistivity of 9.7 +/- 1.6 microOhm-cm, which is three to four times lower than their bulk counterpart. Theoretical calculations corroborate the experimental observations, attributing this exceptional resistivity reduction to surface dominant conduction with long carrier lifetime at finite temperatures. Further characterization of NbAs nanowires and bulk single crystals reveals high breakdown current density, robust stability, and superior thermal conductivity. Collectively, these properties highlight the strong potential of NbAs nanowires as next-generation interconnects, which can surpass the limitations of current copper-based interconnects. Technologically, our findings present a practical application of topological materials, while scientifically showcasing the fundamental properties uniquely accessible in nanoscale platforms.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

1D-confined crystallization routes for tungsten phosphides

Topological materials confined in one-dimension (1D) can transform computing technologies, such as 1D topological semimetals for nanoscale interconnects and 1D topological superconductors for fault-tolerant quantum computing. As such, understanding crystallization of 1D-confined topological materials is critical. Here, we demonstrate 1D-confined crystallization routes during template-assisted nanowire synthesis where we observe diameter-dependent phase selectivity for topological metal tungsten phosphides. A phase bifurcation occurs to produce tungsten monophosphide and tungsten diphosphide at the cross-over nanowire diameter of ~ 35 nm. Four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy was used to identify the two phases and to map crystallographic orientations of grains at a few nm resolution. The 1D-confined phase selectivity is attributed to the minimization of the total surface energy, which depends on the nanowire diameter and chemical potentials of precursors. Theoretical calculations were carried out to construct the diameter-dependent phase diagram, which agrees with experimental observations. Our find-ings suggest a new crystallization route to stabilize topological materials confined in 1D.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Structural Phase Transition and Interlayer Coupling in Few-Layer 1T' and Td MoTe2

We performed polarized Raman spectroscopy on mechanically exfoliated few-layer MoTe2 samples and observed both 1T' and Td phases at room temperature. Few-layer 1T' and Td MoTe2 exhibited a significant difference especially in interlayer vibration modes, from which the interlayer coupling strengths were extracted using the linear chain model: strong in-plane anisotropy was observed in both phases. Furthermore, temperature-dependent Raman measurements revealed a peculiar phase transition behavior in few-layer 1T' MoTe2. In contrast to bulk 1T' MoTe2 crystals where the phase transition to the Td phase occurs at ~250 K, the temperature-driven phase transition to the Td phase is increasingly suppressed as the thickness is reduced, and the transition and the critical temperature varied dramatically from sample to sample even for the same thickness. Raman spectra of intermediate phases that correspond to neither 1T' nor Td phase with different interlayer vibration modes were observed, which suggests that several metastable phases exist with similar total energies.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2019

Signatures for half-metallicity and nontrivial surface states in a Kagome-lattice magnetic Weyl semimetal Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$

Weyl semimetals with time reversal symmetry breaking are expected to show various fascinating physical behaviors, such as intrinsic giant anomalous Hall effect, chiral anomaly effect in the bulks, and Fermi arcs on the surfaces. Here we report a scanning tunneling microscopy study on the magnetic Weyl semimetal candidate Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$. According to the morphology and local density of states of the surface, we provide assignments to different surface terminations. The measured local density of states reveals a semimetal gap of ~300 mV, which is further verified as the gap in spin-minority bands using spin-resolved tunneling spectra. Additionally, signature for the nontrivial surface states around 50 mV is proposed. This is further confirmed by the observations of standing waves around a step-edge of the sample. Our observations and their comparison with band structure calculations provide direct yet timely evidence for the bulk and surface band structures of the magnetic Weyl semimetal Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗