Positron surface state as a spectroscopic probe for characterizing surfaces of topological insulator materials

Topological insulators are attracting considerable interest due to their potential for technological applications and as platforms for exploring wide-ranging fundamental science questions. In order to exploit, fine-tune, control, and manipulate the topological surface states, spectroscopic tools which can effectively probe their properties are of key importance. Here, we demonstrate that positrons provide a sensitive probe for topological states and that the associated annihilation spectrum provides a technique for characterizing these states. Firm experimental evidence for the existence of a positron surface state near Bi2Te2Se with a binding energy of Eb=2.7±0.2eV is presented and is confirmed by first-principles calculations. Additionally, the simulations predict a significant signal originating from annihilation with the topological surface states and show the feasibility to detect their spin texture through the use of spin-polarized positron beams.

DOI

10.1103/PhysRevB.94.115411

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Callewaert, V, Shastry, K, Saniz, R, Makkonen, I, Barbiellini, B, Assaf, B A, Heiman, D, Moodera, J S, Partoens, B, Bansil, A & Weiss, A H 2016, ' Positron surface state as a spectroscopic probe for characterizing surfaces of topological insulator materials ', Physical Review B, vol. 94, no. 11, 115411 . https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.94.115411

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https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-201610135033

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[article-cris] Perustieteiden korkeakoulu / SCI

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Positron surface state as a spectroscopic probe for characterizing surfaces of topological insulator materials

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