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Physics Colloquium & TRR 227: Dr. Niels Schröter - Chiral topological semimetals: Next-generation quantum materials at the intersection of topology, correlations, and magnetism

May 03, 2024 | 03:00 PM c.t.
Dr. Niels Schröter

Dr. Niels Schröter
Image Credit: MPI Halle

Max-Planck-Institute of Microstructure Physics, Schröter Lab for Quantum Materials & Technologies, Halle (Saale)

The term chirality is derived from the Greek word for ‘hand’ χειρ (kheir) and generally describes objects that are distinct from their mirror image. It is long known that chirality plays a crucial role in nature, providing powerful functionality to chiral molecules in living organisms.

Our goal is to extend this concept from the molecular to the solid state to discover new chirality-enabled functionalities in crystals that could form the basis for new technologies. One particular focus is on chiral topological semimetals, a new class of quantum materials at the intersection of structural and electronic chirality.

We discovered the first example of this material class a few years ago1 and have since demonstrated that they host new fermionic quasiparticles without analogue in high-energy physics, which carry large and controllable topological charges2.

In this talk, I will present new results beyond these initial works and demonstrate that these materials realise an isotropic parallel spin-momentum locking that can be considered the natural counterpart of Rashba spin-orbit coupling3. Moreover, I will also present fingerprints of parallel locking of the linear momentum to the orbital angular momentum4. If there is time, I will also discuss magnetic chiral topological semimetals and the effect of spin-dependent correlations on the quasiparticle lifetimes of bulk and chiral surface states. I may also comment on our latest attempts to visualize the surface states in nodal superconductors.

1. N. B. M. Schröter, D. Pei, M. G. Vergniory, Y. Sun, K. Manna, F. de Juan, J. A. Krieger, V. Süss, M. Schmidt, P. Dudin, B. Bradlyn, T. K. Kim, T. Schmitt, C. Cacho, C. Felser, V. N. Strocov, Y. Chen, Chiral topological semimetal with multifold band crossings and long Fermi arcs. /Nat. Phys./ *15*, 759–765 (2019).

2. N. B. M. Schröter, S. Stolz, K. Manna, F. de Juan, M. G. Vergniory, J. A. Krieger, D. Pei, T. Schmitt, P. Dudin, T. K. Kim, C. Cacho, B. Bradlyn, H. Borrmann, M. Schmidt, R. Widmer, V. N. Strocov, C. Felser, Observation and control of maximal Chern numbers in a chiral topological semimetal. /Science/ *369*, 179–183 (2020).

3. J. A. Krieger, S. Stolz, I. Robredo, K. Manna, E. C. McFarlane, M. Date, E. B. Guedes, J. H. Dil, C. Shekhar, H. Borrmann, Q. Yang, M. Lin, V. N. Strocov, M. Caputo, B. Pal, M. D. Watson, T. K. Kim, C. Cacho, F. Mazzola, J. Fujii, I. Vobornik, S. S. P. Parkin, B. Bradlyn, C. Felser, M. G. Vergniory, N. B. M. Schröter, Parallel spin-momentum locking in a chiral topological semimetal. arXiv:2210.08221, /to appear //in Nat. Comms. (2024)

4. Y. Yen, J. A. Krieger, M. Yao, I. Robredo, K. Manna, Q. Yang, E. C. McFarlane, C. Shekhar, H. Borrmann, S. Stolz, R. Widmer, O. Gröning, V. N. Strocov, S. S. P. Parkin, C. Felser, M. G. Vergniory, M. Schüler, N.B. M. Schröter, Controllable orbital angular momentum monopoles in chiral topological semimetals. arXiv:2311.13217

Time & Location

May 03, 2024 | 03:00 PM c.t.

Lecture Hall A (1.3.14)
Department of Physics
Arnimallee 14
14195 Berlin

Further Information

Host

Prof. Dr. Piet Brouwer

Keywords

  • colloquium
  • condensed matter
  • electron spectroscopy
  • Niels Schröter
  • physics
  • quantum physics
  • quantum technologies
  • research