IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v15y2024i1d10.1038_s41467-024-49197-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Realization of monolayer ZrTe5 topological insulators with wide band gaps

Author

Listed:
  • Yong-Jie Xu

    (Nanjing University)

  • Guohua Cao

    (University of Science and Technology of China)

  • Qi-Yuan Li

    (Nanjing University)

  • Cheng-Long Xue

    (Nanjing University)

  • Wei-Min Zhao

    (Nanjing University)

  • Qi-Wei Wang

    (Nanjing University)

  • Li-Guo Dou

    (Nanjing University)

  • Xuan Du

    (Nanjing University)

  • Yu-Xin Meng

    (Nanjing University)

  • Yuan-Kun Wang

    (Nanjing University)

  • Yu-Hang Gao

    (Nanjing University)

  • Zhen-Yu Jia

    (Nanjing University)

  • Wei Li

    (Chinese Academy of Sciences)

  • Lianlian Ji

    (Chinese Academy of Sciences)

  • Fang-Sen Li

    (Chinese Academy of Sciences)

  • Zhenyu Zhang

    (University of Science and Technology of China
    Hefei National Laboratory)

  • Ping Cui

    (University of Science and Technology of China
    Hefei National Laboratory)

  • Dingyu Xing

    (Nanjing University
    Nanjing University)

  • Shao-Chun Li

    (Nanjing University
    Hefei National Laboratory
    Nanjing University
    Nanjing University)

Abstract

Two-dimensional topological insulators hosting the quantum spin Hall effect have application potential in dissipationless electronics. To observe the quantum spin Hall effect at elevated temperatures, a wide band gap is indispensable to efficiently suppress bulk conduction. Yet, most candidate materials exhibit narrow or even negative band gaps. Here, via elegant control of van der Waals epitaxy, we have successfully grown monolayer ZrTe5 on a bilayer graphene/SiC substrate. The epitaxial ZrTe5 monolayer crystalizes in two allotrope isomers with different intralayer alignments of ZrTe3 prisms. Our scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy characterization unveils an intrinsic full band gap as large as 254 meV and one-dimensional edge states localized along the periphery of the ZrTe5 monolayer. First-principles calculations further confirm that the large band gap originates from strong spin−orbit coupling, and the edge states are topologically nontrivial. These findings thus provide a highly desirable material platform for the exploration of the high-temperature quantum spin Hall effect.

Suggested Citation

  • Yong-Jie Xu & Guohua Cao & Qi-Yuan Li & Cheng-Long Xue & Wei-Min Zhao & Qi-Wei Wang & Li-Guo Dou & Xuan Du & Yu-Xin Meng & Yuan-Kun Wang & Yu-Hang Gao & Zhen-Yu Jia & Wei Li & Lianlian Ji & Fang-Sen L, 2024. "Realization of monolayer ZrTe5 topological insulators with wide band gaps," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-8, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-49197-x
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49197-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-49197-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-024-49197-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Junxiang Jia & Elizabeth Marcellina & Anirban Das & Michael S. Lodge & BaoKai Wang & Duc-Quan Ho & Riddhi Biswas & Tuan Anh Pham & Wei Tao & Cheng-Yi Huang & Hsin Lin & Arun Bansil & Shantanu Mukherje, 2022. "Tuning the many-body interactions in a helical Luttinger liquid," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-7, December.
    2. Yekai Song & Chunjing Jia & Hongyu Xiong & Binbin Wang & Zhicheng Jiang & Kui Huang & Jinwoong Hwang & Zhuojun Li & Choongyu Hwang & Zhongkai Liu & Dawei Shen & Jonathan A. Sobota & Patrick Kirchmann , 2023. "Signatures of the exciton gas phase and its condensation in monolayer 1T-ZrTe2," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-7, December.
    3. Ye-Heng Song & Zhen-Yu Jia & Dongqin Zhang & Xin-Yang Zhu & Zhi-Qiang Shi & Huaiqiang Wang & Li Zhu & Qian-Qian Yuan & Haijun Zhang & Ding-Yu Xing & Shao-Chun Li, 2018. "Observation of Coulomb gap in the quantum spin Hall candidate single-layer 1T’-WTe2," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 9(1), pages 1-6, December.
    4. Yan Zhang & Chenlu Wang & Li Yu & Guodong Liu & Aiji Liang & Jianwei Huang & Simin Nie & Xuan Sun & Yuxiao Zhang & Bing Shen & Jing Liu & Hongming Weng & Lingxiao Zhao & Genfu Chen & Xiaowen Jia & Che, 2017. "Electronic evidence of temperature-induced Lifshitz transition and topological nature in ZrTe5," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 8(1), pages 1-9, August.
    5. Peng Zhang & Ryo Noguchi & Kenta Kuroda & Chun Lin & Kaishu Kawaguchi & Koichiro Yaji & Ayumi Harasawa & Mikk Lippmaa & Simin Nie & Hongming Weng & V. Kandyba & A. Giampietri & A. Barinov & Qiang Li &, 2021. "Observation and control of the weak topological insulator state in ZrTe5," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-7, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jinyu Liu & Yinong Zhou & Sebastian Yepez Rodriguez & Matthew A. Delmont & Robert A. Welser & Triet Ho & Nicholas Sirica & Kaleb McClure & Paolo Vilmercati & Joseph W. Ziller & Norman Mannella & Javie, 2024. "Controllable strain-driven topological phase transition and dominant surface-state transport in HfTe5," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    2. Lun-Hui Hu & Rui-Xing Zhang, 2024. "Dislocation Majorana bound states in iron-based superconductors," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    3. Yaxin Jiang & Hao Xiong & Tianping Ying & Guo Tian & Xiao Chen & Fei Wei, 2024. "Ultrasmall single-layered NbSe2 nanotubes flattened within a chemical-driven self-pressurized carbon nanotube," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-8, December.
    4. Jingyuan Zhong & Ming Yang & Zhijian Shi & Yaqi Li & Dan Mu & Yundan Liu & Ningyan Cheng & Wenxuan Zhao & Weichang Hao & Jianfeng Wang & Lexian Yang & Jincheng Zhuang & Yi Du, 2023. "Towards layer-selective quantum spin hall channels in weak topological insulator Bi4Br2I2," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-8, December.
    5. Huimin Zhang & Basu Dev Oli & Qiang Zou & Xu Guo & Zhengfei Wang & Lian Li, 2023. "Visualizing symmetry-breaking electronic orders in epitaxial Kagome magnet FeSn films," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-8, December.
    6. Erjian Cheng & Wei Xia & Xianbiao Shi & Hongwei Fang & Chengwei Wang & Chuanying Xi & Shaowen Xu & Darren C. Peets & Linshu Wang & Hao Su & Li Pi & Wei Ren & Xia Wang & Na Yu & Yulin Chen & Weiwei Zha, 2021. "Magnetism-induced topological transition in EuAs3," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    7. Dong Xing & Bingbing Tong & Senyang Pan & Zezhi Wang & Jianlin Luo & Jinglei Zhang & Cheng-Long Zhang, 2024. "Rashba-splitting-induced topological flat band detected by anomalous resistance oscillations beyond the quantum limit in ZrTe5," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-7, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-49197-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.