Realization of the Chern-insulator and axion-insulator phases in antiferromagnetic MnTe/Bi2(Se, Te)3/MnTe heterostructures

• Breaking time-reversal symmetry in three-dimensional topological insulator thin films can lead to different topological quantum phases, such as the Chern insulator (CI) phase and the axion insulator (AI) phase. Using first-principles density functional theory methods, we investigate the onset of these two topological phases in a trilayer heterostructure consisting of a Bi2Se3 (Bi2Te3) TI thin film sandwiched between two antiferromagneticMnTe layers. We find that an orthogonal exchange field from the MnTe layers, stabilized by a small anisotropy barrier, opens an energy gap of the order of 10 meV at the Dirac point of the TI film. A topological analysis demonstrates that, depending on the relative orientation of the exchange field at the two interfaces, the total Chern number of the system is either C = 1 or C = 0, characteristic of the CI and AI phases, respectively. Nontopological surface states inside the energy-gap region, caused by the interface potential, complicate this identification. Remarkably though, the calculation of the anomalous Hall conductivity shows that such nontopological surface states do not affect the topology-induced transport properties. Given the size of the exchange gap, we estimate that gapless chiral edge states, leading to the quantum anomalous Hall effect, should emerge on the sidewalls of these heterostructures in the CI phase for widths > 200 nm. We also discuss the possibility of inducing transitions between the CI and the AI phases by means of the spin-orbit torque caused by the spin Hall effect in an adjacent conducting layer.

Ämnesord

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik -- Den kondenserade materiens fysik (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences -- Condensed Matter Physics (hsv//eng)

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Condensed Matter Physics

Kondenserade materians fysik

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