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Register a new userThree-component fermions with surface Fermi arcs in topological semimetal tungsten carbide
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Topological Dirac and Weyl semimetals not only host quasiparticles analogous to the elementary fermionic particles in high-energy physics, but also have nontrivial band topology manifested by exotic Fermi arcs on the surface. Recent advances suggest new types of topological semimetals, in which spatial symmetries protect gapless electronic excitations without high-energy analogy. Here we observe triply-degenerate nodal points (TPs) near the Fermi level of WC, in which the low-energy quasiparticles are described as three-component fermions distinct from Dirac and Weyl fermions. We further observe the surface states whose constant energy contours are pairs of Fermi arcs connecting the surface projection of the TPs, proving the nontrivial topology of the newly identified semimetal state.
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Condensed matter systems can host quasiparticle excitations that are analogues to elementary particles such as Majorana, Weyl, and Dirac fermions. Recent advances in band theory have expanded the classification of fermions in crystals, and revealed crystal symmetry-protected electron excitations that have no high-energy counterparts. Here, using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we demonstrate the existence of a triply degenerate point in the electronic structure of MoP crystal, where the quasiparticle excitations are beyond the Majorana-Weyl-Dirac classification. Furthermore, we observe pairs of Weyl points in the bulk electronic structure coexisting with the new fermions, thus introducing a platform for studying the interplay between different types of fermions.
In condensed matter systems, chiral topological nodes are robust band crossing points in momentum space that carry nonzero Chern numbers. The chirality is manifested by the presence of surface Fermi arcs connecting the projections of nodes with opposite Chern numbers. In addition to the well-known Weyl nodes, theorists have proposed several other types of chiral topological nodes in condensed matter systems, but the direct experimental evidence of their existence is still lacking. Here, using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we reveal two types of new chiral nodes, namely the spin-1 nodes and charge-2 Dirac nodes, at the band crossing points near the Fermi level in CoSi, the projections of which on the (001) surface are connected by topologically protected surface Fermi arcs. As these chiral nodes in CoSi are enforced at the Brillouin zone (BZ) center and corner by the crystalline symmetries, the surface Fermi arcs connecting their projections form a non-contractible path traversing the entire (001) surface BZ, in sharp contrast to pairs of Weyl nodes with small separation. Our work marks the first experimental observation of chiral topological nodes beyond the Weyl nodes both in the bulk and on the surface in condensed matter systems.
We proposed that BaHgSn is a Dirac semimetal (DSM) which can host hourglass-like surface states (HSSs) as protected by nonsymmorphic glide symmetry. Compared to KHgSb, an isostructural topological crystalline insulator with the same HSSs, BaHgSn has an additional band inversion at $Gamma$ point. This band inversion is induced by the stronger interlayer coupling among Hg-Sn honeycomb layers than that among Hg-Sb-layers in KHgSb, which leads to bulk Dirac nodes in BaHgSn along the layer stacking direction $Gamma$-$A$. In addition, the mirror Chern number $C_{i}$ protected by the mirror plane $overline{M}_{z}$ ($k_z$=0) changes from 2 in KHgSb to 3 in BaHgSn. Therefore, when a compressive uniaxial strain is applied along the $y$ axis to break the rotation symmetry protecting the DSM state, BaHgSn becomes a strong topological insulator with $Z_{2}$ indices of $(1;000)$ and the topological surface Dirac cone co-exists with HSSs on the (010) surface. The Wilson-loop spectra have been calculated to verify these topological features. The calculated surface states, the Fermi surfaces and their quasiparticle interference patterns are ready to be compared with experimental measurements.
Very recently, the half-metallic compound Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ was predicted to be a magnetic WSM with Weyl points only 60 meV above the Fermi level ($E_F$). Owing to the low charge carrier density and large Berry curvature induced, Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ possesses both a large anomalous Hall conductivity (AHC) and a large anomalous Hall angle (AHA), which provide strong evidence for the existence of Weyl points in Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$. In this work, we theoretically studied the surface topological feature of Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ and its counterpart Co$_3$Sn$_2$Se$_2$. By cleaving the sample at the weak Sn-S/Se bonds, one can achieve two different surfaces terminated with Sn and S/Se atoms, respectively. The resulting Fermi arc related states can range from the energy of the Weyl points to $E_F$-0.1 eV in the Sn-terminated surface. Therefore, it should be possible to observe the Fermi arcs in angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) measurements. Furthermore, in order to simulate quasiparticle interference (QPI) in scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements, we also calculated the joint density of states (JDOS), which revealed that the QPI patterns arising from Fermi arc related scatterings are clearly visible for both terminals. This work would be helpful for a comprehensive understanding of the topological properties of these two magnetic WSMs and further ARPES and STM measurements.
Weyl semimetals display a novel topological phase of matter where the Weyl nodes emerge in pairs of opposite chirality and can be seen as either a source or a sink of Berry curvature. The exotic effects in Weyl semimetals, such as surface Fermi arcs and the chiral anomaly, make them a new playground for exploring novel functionalities. Further exploiting their potential applications requires clear understanding of their topological electronic properties, such as Weyl points and Fermi arcs. Here we report a Fourier transform scanning tunneling spectroscopy (FT-STS) study on a type-II Weyl semimetal candidate MoTe$_2$ whose Weyl points are predicated to be located above Fermi level. Although its electronic structure below the Fermi level have been identified by angle resolved photo emission spectroscopy (ARPES), by comparing our experimental data with first-principles calculations, we are able to identify the origins of the multiple scattering channels at energies both below and above Fermi level. Our calculations also show the existence of both trivial and topological arc like states above the Fermi energy. In the FT-STS experiments, we have observed strong signals from intra-arc scatterings as well as from the scattering between the arc-like surface states and the projected bulk states. A detailed comparison between our experimental observations and calculated results reveals the trivial and non-trivial scattering channels are difficult to distinguish in this compound. Interestingly, we find that the broken inversion symmetry changes the terminating states on the two inequivalent surfaces, which in turn changes the relative strength of the scattering channels observed in the FT-STS images on the two surfaces.
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