Broad and colossal edge supercurrent in Dirac semimetal Cd3As2 Josephson junctions.

Edge supercurrent has attracted great interest recently due to its crucial role in achieving and manipulating topological superconducting states. Proximity-induced superconductivity has been realized in quantum Hall and quantum spin Hall edge states, as well as in higher-order topological hinge states. Non-Hermitian skin effect, the aggregation of non-Bloch eigenstates at open boundaries, promises an abnormal edge channel. Here we report the observation of broad edge supercurrent in Dirac semimetal Cd3As2-based Josephson junctions. The as-grown Cd3As2 nanoplates are electron-doped by intrinsic defects, which enhance the non-Hermitian perturbations. The superconducting quantum interference indicates edge supercurrent with a width of ~1.6 µm and a magnitude of ~1 µA at 10 mK. The wide and large edge supercurrent is inaccessible for a conventional edge system and suggests the presence of non-Hermitian skin effect. A supercurrent nonlocality is also observed. The interplay between band topology and non-Hermiticity is beneficial for exploiting exotic topological matter.

Enhancement of the Surface Morphology of (Bi0.4Sb0.6)2Te3 Thin Films by In Situ Thermal Annealing.

The study of the exotic properties of the surface states of topological insulators requires defect-free and smooth surfaces. This work aims to study the enhancement of the surface morphology of optimally doped, high-crystalline (Bi0.4Sb0.6)2Te3 films deposited by molecular beam epitaxy on Al2O3 (001) substrates. Atomic force microscopy shows that by employing an in situ thermal post anneal, the surface roughness is reduced significantly, and transmission electron microscopy reveals that structural defects are diminished substantially. Thence, these films provide a great platform for the research on the thickness-dependent properties of topological insulators.

Phase Separation Prevents the Synthesis of VBi2Te4 by Molecular Beam Epitaxy.

Intrinsic magnetic topological insulators (IMTIs) have a non-trivial band topology in combination with magnetic order. This potentially leads to fascinating states of matter, such as quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) insulators and axion insulators. One of the theoretically predicted IMTIs is VBi2Te4, but experimental evidence of this material is lacking so far. Here, we report on our attempts to synthesise VBi2Te4 by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). X-ray diffraction reveals that in the thermodynamic phase space reachable by MBE, there is no region where VBi2Te4 is stably synthesised. Moreover, scanning transmission electron microscopy shows a clear phase separation to Bi2Te3 and VTe2 instead of the formation of VBi2Te4. We suggest the phase instability to be due to either the large lattice mismatch between VTe2 and Bi2Te3 or the unfavourable valence state of vanadium.

Revisiting the van der Waals Epitaxy in the Case of (Bi0.4Sb0.6)2Te3 Thin Films on Dissimilar Substrates.

Ultrathin films of the ternary topological insulator (Bi0.4Sb0.6)2Te3 are fabricated by molecular beam epitaxy. Although it is generally assumed that the ternary topological insulator tellurides grow by van der Waals epitaxy, our results show that the influence of the substrate is substantial and governs the formation of defects, mosaicity, and twin domains. For this comparative study, InP (111)A, Al2O3 (001), and SrTiO3 (111) substrates were selected. While the films deposited on lattice-matched InP (111)A show van der Waals epitaxial relations, our results point to a quasi-van der Waals epitaxy for the films grown on substrates with a larger lattice mismatch.

External tuning of topological phase transitions induced by interaction driven mass renormalization.

Electron-electron interactions can be useful for realizing new nontrivial topological phases of matter. Here, we show by means of a tight-binding model and mean field theory how electron-electron interactions can lead to a topological phase transition. By externally adding or removing electrons from the system a band inversion between two bands with different parity is induced. This leads to a topological nontrivial phase if spin-orbit coupling is present. Besides the toy-model illustrating this mechanism, we also propose SmB6as a possible playground for experimentally realizing a topological phase transition by external tuning.

Reappearance of first Shapiro step in narrow topological Josephson junctions.

In Josephson junctions, a supercurrent across a nonsuperconducting weak link is carried by electron-hole bound states. Because of the helical spin texture of nondegenerate topological surface states, gapless bound states are established in junctions with topological weak link. These have a characteristic 4π-periodic current phase relation (CΦR) that leads to twice the conventional Shapiro step separation voltage in radio frequency-dependent measurements. In this context, we identify an attenuated first Shapiro step in (Bi0.06Sb0.94)2Te3 (BST) Josephson junctions with AlO x capping layer. We further investigate junctions on narrow, selectively deposited BST nanoribbons, where surface charges are confined to the perimeter of the nanoribbon. Within these junctions, previously identified signatures of gapless bound states are absent. Because of confinement, transverse momentum sub-bands are quantized and a topological gap opening is observed. Surface states within these quantized sub-bands are spin degenerate, which evokes bound states of conventional 2π-periodic CΦR within the BST nanoribbon weak link.

Thickness-Dependent Band Gap Modification in BaBiO3.

The material BaBiO3 is known for its insulating character. However, for thin films, in the ultra-thin limit, metallicity is expected because the oxygen octahedra breathing mode will be suppressed as reported recently. Here, we confirm the influence of the oxygen breathing mode on the size of the band gap. The electronic properties of a BaBiO3 thickness series are studied using in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy. We observe a wide-gap (EG > 1.2 V) to small-gap (EG ≈ 0.07 eV) semiconductor transition as a function of a decreasing BaBiO3 film thickness. However, even for an ultra-thin BaBiO3 film, no metallic state is present. The dependence of the band gap size is found to be coinciding with the intensity of the Raman response of the breathing phonon mode as a function of thickness.

Topological Transition of Superconductivity in Dirac Semimetal Nanowire Josephson Junctions.

We report the topological transition by gate control in a Cd_{3}As_{2} Dirac semimetal nanowire Josephson junction with diameter of about 64 nm. In the electron branch, the quantum confinement effect enforces the surface band into a series of gapped subbands and thus nontopological states. In the hole branch, however, because the hole mean free path is smaller than the nanowire perimeter, the quantum confinement effect is inoperative and the topological property maintained. The superconductivity is enhanced by gate tuning from electron to hole conduction, manifested by a larger critical supercurrent and a larger critical magnetic field, which is attributed to the topological transition from gapped surface subbands to a gapless surface band. The gate-controlled topological transition of superconductivity should be valuable for manipulation of Majorana zero modes, providing a platform for future compatible and scalable design of topological qubits.

Artificial oxide heterostructures with non-trivial topology.

In the quest for topological insulators with large band gaps, heterostructures with Rashba spin-orbit interactions come into play. Transition metal oxides with heavy ions are especially interesting in this respect. We discuss the design principles for stacking oxide Rashba layers. Assuming a single layer with a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) on both interfaces as a building block, a two-dimensional topological insulating phase is present when negative coupling between the 2DEGs exists. When stacking multiple building blocks, a two-dimensional or three-dimensional topological insulator is artificially created, depending on the intra- and interlayer coupling strengths and the number of building blocks. We show that the three-dimensional topological insulator is protected by reflection symmetry, and can therefore be classified as a topological crystalline insulator. In order to isolate the topological states from bulk states, the intralayer coupling term needs to be quadratic in momentum. It is described how such a quadratic coupling could potentially be realized by taking buckling within the layers into account. The buckling, thereby, brings the idea of stacked Rashba system very close to the alternative approach of realizing the buckled honeycomb lattice in [111]-oriented perovskite oxides.

Inhomogeneous superconductivity and quasilinear magnetoresistance at amorphous LaTiO3/SrTiO3interfaces.

We have studied the transport properties of LaTiO3/SrTiO3(LTO/STO) heterostructures. In spite of 2D growth observed in reflection high energy electron diffraction, Transmission Electron Microscopy images revealed that the samples tend to amorphize. Still, we observe that the structures are conducting, and some of them exhibit high conductance and/or superconductivity. We established that conductivity arises mainly on the STO side of the interface, and shows all the signs of the 2-dimensional electron gas usually observed at interfaces between STO and LTO or LaAlO3, including the presence of two electron bands and tunability with a gate voltage. Analysis of magnetoresistance (MR) and superconductivity indicates presence of a spatial fluctuations of the electronic properties in our samples. That can explain the observed quasilinear out-of-plane MR, as well as various features of the in-plane MR and the observed superconductivity.

Reducing Electronic Transport Dimension to Topological Hinge States by Increasing Geometry Size of Dirac Semimetal Josephson Junctions.

The notion of topological phases has been extended to higher-order and has been generalized to different dimensions. As a paradigm, Cd_{3}As_{2} is predicted to be a higher-order topological semimetal, possessing three-dimensional bulk Dirac fermions, two-dimensional Fermi arcs, and one-dimensional hinge states. These topological states have different characteristic length scales in electronic transport, allowing one to distinguish their properties when changing sample size. Here, we report an anomalous dimensional reduction of supercurrent transport by increasing the size of Dirac semimetal Cd_{3}As_{2}-based Josephson junctions. An evolution of the supercurrent quantum interferences from a standard Fraunhofer pattern to a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID)-like one is observed when the junction channel length is increased. The SQUID-like interference pattern indicates the supercurrent flowing through the 1D hinges. The identification of 1D hinge states should be valuable for deeper understanding of the higher-order topological phase in a 3D Dirac semimetal.

Induced Topological Superconductivity in a BiSbTeSe2-Based Josephson Junction.

A 4 π -periodic supercurrent through a Josephson junction can be a consequence of the presence of Majorana bound states. A systematic study of the radio frequency response for several temperatures and frequencies yields a concrete protocol for examining the 4 π -periodic contribution to the supercurrent. This work also reports the observation of a 4 π -periodic contribution to the supercurrent in BiSbTeSe 2 -based Josephson junctions. As a response to irradiation by radio frequency waves, the junctions showed an absence of the first Shapiro step. At high irradiation power, a qualitative correspondence to a model including a 4 π -periodic component to the supercurrent is found.

Fermi-arc supercurrent oscillations in Dirac semimetal Josephson junctions.

One prominent hallmark of topological semimetals is the existence of unusual topological surface states known as Fermi arcs. Nevertheless, the Fermi-arc superconductivity remains elusive. Here, we report the critical current oscillations from surface Fermi arcs in Nb-Dirac semimetal Cd3As2-Nb Josephson junctions. The supercurrent from bulk states are suppressed under an in-plane magnetic field ~0.1 T, while the supercurrent from the topological surface states survives up to 0.5 T. Contrary to the minimum normal-state conductance, the Fermi-arc carried supercurrent shows a maximum critical value near the Dirac point, which is consistent with the fact that the Fermi arcs have maximum density of state at the Dirac point. Moreover, the critical current exhibits periodic oscillations with a parallel magnetic field, which is well understood by considering the in-plane orbital effect from the surface states. Our results suggest the Dirac semimetal combined with superconductivity should be promising for topological quantum devices.

Josephson Effect and Charge Distribution in Thin Bi2 Te3 Topological Insulators.

Thin layers of topological insulator materials are quasi-2D systems featuring a complex interplay between quantum confinement and topological band structure. To understand the role of the spatial distribution of carriers in electrical transport, the Josephson effect, magnetotransport, and weak anti-localization are studied in bottom-gated thin Bi2 Te3 topological insulator films. The experimental carrier densities are compared to a model based on the solutions of the self-consistent Schrödinger-Poisson equations and they are in excellent agreement. The modeling allows for a quantitative interpretation of the weak antilocalization correction to the conduction and of the critical current of Josephson junctions with weak links made from such films without any ad hoc assumptions.

Hard Superconducting Gap and Diffusion-Induced Superconductors in Ge-Si Nanowires.

We show a hard superconducting gap in a Ge-Si nanowire Josephson transistor up to in-plane magnetic fields of 250 mT, an important step toward creating and detecting Majorana zero modes in this system. A hard gap requires a highly homogeneous tunneling heterointerface between the superconducting contacts and the semiconducting nanowire. This is realized by annealing devices at 180 °C during which aluminum interdiffuses and replaces the germanium in a section of the nanowire. Next to Al, we find a superconductor with lower critical temperature (TC = 0.9 K) and a higher critical field (BC = 0.9-1.2 T). We can therefore selectively switch either superconductor to the normal state by tuning the temperature and the magnetic field and observe that the additional superconductor induces a proximity supercurrent in the semiconducting part of the nanowire even when the Al is in the normal state. In another device where the diffusion of Al rendered the nanowire completely metallic, a superconductor with a much higher critical temperature (TC = 2.9 K) and critical field (BC = 3.4 T) is found. The small size of these diffusion-induced superconductors inside nanowires may be of special interest for applications requiring high magnetic fields in arbitrary direction.

Zeeman-Effect-Induced 0-π Transitions in Ballistic Dirac Semimetal Josephson Junctions.

One of the consequences of Cooper pairs having a finite momentum in the interlayer of a Josephson junction is π-junction behavior. The finite momentum can either be due to an exchange field in ferromagnetic Josephson junctions, or due to the Zeeman effect. Here, we report the observation of Zeeman-effect-induced 0-π transitions in Bi_{1-x}Sb_{x}, three-dimensional Dirac semimetal-based Josephson junctions. The large in-plane g factor allows tuning of the Josephson junctions from 0 to π regimes. This is revealed by measuring a π phase shift in the current-phase relation measured with an asymmetric superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID). Additionally, we directly measure a nonsinusoidal current-phase relation in the asymmetric SQUID, consistent with models for ballistic Josephson transport.

Selective area growth and stencil lithography for in situ fabricated quantum devices.

The interplay of Dirac physics and induced superconductivity at the interface of a 3D topological insulator (TI) with an s-wave superconductor (S) provides a new platform for topologically protected quantum computation based on elusive Majorana modes. To employ such S-TI hybrid devices in future topological quantum computation architectures, a process is required that allows for device fabrication under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. Here, we report on the selective area growth of (Bi,Sb)2Te3 TI thin films and stencil lithography of superconductive Nb for a full in situ fabrication of S-TI hybrid devices via molecular-beam epitaxy. A dielectric capping layer was deposited as a final step to protect the delicate surfaces of the S-TI hybrids at ambient conditions. Transport experiments in as-prepared Josephson junctions show highly transparent S-TI interfaces and a missing first Shapiro step, which indicates the presence of Majorana bound states. To move from single junctions towards complex circuitry for future topological quantum computation architectures, we monolithically integrated two aligned hardmasks to the substrate prior to growth. The presented process provides new possibilities to deliberately combine delicate quantum materials in situ at the nanoscale.

4π-Periodic Supercurrent from Surface States in Cd_{3}As_{2} Nanowire-Based Josephson Junctions.

The combination of superconductivity and surface states in Dirac semimetal can produce a 4π-periodic supercurrent in a Josephson junction configuration, which can be revealed by the missing of odd Shapiro steps (especially the n=1 step). However, the suppression of the n=1 step is also anticipated in the high-power oscillatory regime of the ordinary 2π-periodic Josephson effect, which is irrelevant to the 4π-periodic supercurrent. Here, in order to identify the origin of the suppressed n=1 step, we perform the measurements of radio frequency irradiation on Nb-Dirac semimetal Cd_{3}As_{2} nanowire-Nb junctions with continuous power dependence at various frequencies. Besides the n=1 step suppression, we uncover a residual supercurrent of first node at the n=0 step, which provides a direct and predominant signature of the 4π-periodic supercurrent. Furthermore, by tuning the gate voltage, we can modulate the surface and bulk state contribution and the visibility of the n=1 step. Our results provide deep insights to explore the topological superconductivity in Dirac semimetals.

4π-periodic Andreev bound states in a Dirac semimetal.

Although signatures of superconductivity in Dirac semimetals have been reported, for instance by applying pressure or using point contacts, our understanding of the topological aspects of Dirac semimetal superconductivity is still developing. Here, we utilize nanoscale phase-sensitive junction technology to induce superconductivity in the Dirac semimetal Bi1-xSbx. Our radiofrequency irradiation experiments then reveal a significant contribution of 4π-periodic Andreev bound states to the supercurrent in Nb-Bi0.97Sb0.03-Nb Josephson junctions. The conditions for a substantial 4π contribution to the supercurrent are favourable because of the Dirac cone's very broad transmission resonances and a measurement frequency faster than the quasiparticle poisoning rate. In addition, we show that a magnetic field applied in the plane of the junction allows tuning of the Josephson junctions from 0 to π regimes. Our results open the technologically appealing avenue of employing the topological bulk properties of Dirac semimetals for topological superconductivity research and topological quantum computer development.

Josephson Effect in a Few-Hole Quantum Dot.

A Ge-Si core-shell nanowire is used to realize a Josephson field-effect transistor with highly transparent contacts to superconducting leads. By changing the electric field, access to two distinct regimes, not combined before in a single device, is gained: in the accumulation mode the device is highly transparent and the supercurrent is carried by multiple subbands, while near depletion, the supercurrent is carried by single-particle levels of a strongly coupled quantum dot operating in the few-hole regime. These results establish Ge-Si nanowires as an important platform for hybrid superconductor-semiconductor physics and Majorana fermions.