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1. Monolayer Superconductivity and Tunable Topological Electronic Structure at the Fe(Te,Se)/Bi 2 Te 3 Interface

   https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202210940  

   Moore, Robert G. ; Lu, Qiangsheng ; Jeon, Hoyeon ; Yao, Xiong ; Smith, Tyler ; Pai, Yun‐Yi ; Chilcote, Michael ; Miao, Hu ; Okamoto, Satoshi ; Li, An‐Ping ; et al ( April 2023 , Advanced Materials)

   The interface between 2D topological Dirac states and ans‐wave superconductor is expected to support Majorana‐bound states (MBS) that can be used for quantum computing applications. Realizing these novel states of matter and their applications requires control over superconductivity and spin‐orbit coupling to achieve spin‐momentum‐locked topological interface states (TIS) which are simultaneously superconducting. While signatures of MBS have been observed in the magnetic vortex cores of bulk FeTe_0.55Se_0.45, inhomogeneity and disorder from doping make these signatures unclear and inconsistent between vortices. Here superconductivity is reported in monolayer (ML) FeTe_1–ySe_y(Fe(Te,Se)) grown on Bi₂Te₃by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Spin and angle‐resolved photoemission spectroscopy (SARPES) directly resolve the interfacial spin and electronic structure of Fe(Te,Se)/Bi₂Te₃heterostructures. Fory = 0.25, the Fe(Te,Se) electronic structure is found to overlap with the Bi₂Te₃TIS and the desired spin‐momentum locking is not observed. In contrast, fory = 0.1, reduced inhomogeneity measured by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and a smaller Fe(Te,Se) Fermi surface with clear spin‐momentum locking in the topological states are found. Hence, it is demonstrated that the Fe(Te,Se)/Bi₂Te₃system is a highly tunable platform for realizing MBS where reduced doping can improve characteristics important for Majorana interrogation and potential applications.

    

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2. Self-assembled Bismuth Selenide (Bi2Se3) quantum dots grown by molecular beam epitaxy

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-39821-y  

   Claro, Marcel S. ; Levy, Ido ; Gangopadhyay, Abhinandan ; Smith, David J. ; Tamargo, Maria C. ( March 2019 , Scientific Reports)

   We report the growth of self-assembled Bi₂Se₃quantum dots (QDs) by molecular beam epitaxy on GaAs substrates using the droplet epitaxy technique. The QD formation occurs after anneal of Bismuth droplets under Selenium flux. Characterization by atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray reflectance spectroscopy is presented. Raman spectra confirm the QD quality. The quantum dots are crystalline, with hexagonal shape, and have average dimensions of 12-nm height (12 quintuple layers) and 46-nm width, and a density of 8.5 × 10⁹ cm⁻². This droplet growth technique provides a means to produce topological insulator QDs in a reproducible and controllable way, providing convenient access to a promising quantum material with singular spin properties.

    

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3. Systemic consequences of disorder in magnetically self-organized topological MnBi 2 Te 4 /(Bi 2 Te 3 ) n superlattices

   https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1583/ac3cc6  

   Sitnicka, Joanna ; Park, Kyungwha ; Skupiński, Paweł ; Grasza, Krzysztof ; Reszka, Anna ; Sobczak, Kamil ; Borysiuk, Jolanta ; Adamus, Zbigniew ; Tokarczyk, Mateusz ; Avdonin, Andrei ; et al ( December 2021 , 2D Materials)

   Abstract MnBi 2 Te 4 /(Bi 2 Te 3 ) n materials system has recently generated strong interest as a natural platform for the realization of the quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) state. The system is magnetically much better ordered than substitutionally doped materials, however, the detrimental effects of certain disorders are becoming increasingly acknowledged. Here, from compiling structural, compositional, and magnetic metrics of disorder in ferromagnetic (FM) MnBi 2 Te 4 /(Bi 2 Te 3 ) n it is found that migration of Mn between MnBi 2 Te 4 septuple layers (SLs) and otherwise non-magnetic Bi 2 Te 3 quintuple layers (QLs) has systemic consequences—it induces FM coupling of Mn-depleted SLs with Mn-doped QLs, seen in ferromagnetic resonance as an acoustic and optical resonance mode of the two coupled spin subsystems. Even for a large SL separation ( n ≳ 4 QLs) the structure cannot be considered as a stack of uncoupled two-dimensional layers. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and density functional theory studies show that Mn disorder within an SL causes delocalization of electron wave functions and a change of the surface band structure as compared to the ideal MnBi 2 Te 4 /(Bi 2 Te 3 ) n . These findings highlight the critical importance of inter- and intra-SL disorder towards achieving new QAH platforms as well as exploring novel axion physics in intrinsic topological magnets. 

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4. The influence of crystal thickness and interlayer interactions on the properties of heavy ion irradiated MoS 2

   https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1583/ab817b  

   Isherwood, Liam H. ; Hennighausen, Zachariah ; Son, Seok-Kyun ; Spencer, Ben F. ; Wady, Paul T. ; Shubeita, Samir M. ; Kar, Swastik ; Casiraghi, Cinzia ; Baidak, Aliaksandr ( May 2020 , 2D Materials)

   Ion irradiation is a versatile tool to introduce controlled defects into two-dimensional (2D) MoS₂on account of its unique spatial resolution and plethora of ion types and energies available. In order to fully realise the potential of this technique, a holistic understanding of ion-induced defect production in 2D MoS₂crystals of different thicknesses is mandatory. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, electron diffraction and Raman spectroscopy show that thinner MoS₂crystals are more susceptible to radiation damage caused by 225 keV Xe⁺ions. However, the rate of defect production in quadrilayer and bulk crystals is not significantly different under our experimental conditions. The rate at which S atoms are sputtered as a function of radiation exposure is considerably higher for monolayer MoS₂, compared to bulk crystals, leading to MoO₃formation. P-doping of MoS₂is observed and attributed to the acceptor states introduced by vacancies and charge transfer interactions with adsorbed species. Moreover, the out-of-plane vibrational properties of irradiated MoS₂crystals are shown to be strongly thickness-dependent: in mono- and bilayer MoS₂, the confinement of phonons by defects results in a blueshift of the$A_{1g}$mode. Whereas, a redshift is observed in bulk crystals due to attenuation of the effective restoring forces acting on S atoms caused by vacancies in adjacent MoS₂layers. Consequently, the$A_{1g}$frequency of tri- and quadrilayer crystals is statistically invariant on account oft competition between phonon confinement effects and interlayer interactions. The$A_{1g}$linewidth is observed to decrease in bi- and trilayer crystals after low dose irradiation and is attributed to layer decoupling. This work shows that there is a complex interplay between defect production, crystal thickness and interlayer interactions in MoS₂. Our results demonstrate that ion irradiation is an effective tool to modulate the electronic, vibrational and structural properties of MoS₂, which may prove beneficial for practical applications.

    

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5. Effect of R-site element on crystalline phase and thermal stability of Fe substituted Mn mullite-type oxides: R 2 (Mn 1−x Fe x ) 4 O 10−δ (R = Y, Sm or Bi; x = 0, 0.5, 1)

   https://doi.org/10.1039/C7RA09699B  

   Thampy, Sampreetha ; Ashburn, Nickolas ; Martin, Thomas J. ; Li, Chenzhe ; Zheng, Yongping ; Chan, Julia Y. ; Cho, Kyeongjae ; Hsu, Julia W. ( January 2018 , RSC Advances)

   Combining experimental and theoretical studies, we investigate the role of R-site (R = Y, Sm, Bi) element on the phase formation and thermal stability of R 2 (Mn 1−x Fe x ) 4 O 10−δ ( x = 0, 0.5, 1) mullite-type oxides. Our results show a distinct R-site dependent phase behavior for mullite-type oxides as Fe is substituted for Mn: 100% mullite-type phase was formed in (Y, Sm, Bi) 2 Mn 4 O 10 ; 55% and 18% of (Y, Sm) 2 Mn 2 Fe 2 O 10−δ was found when R = Y and Sm, respectively, for equal Fe and Mn molar concentrations in the reactants, whereas Bi formed 54% O10- and 42% O9-mixed mullite-type phases. Furthermore, when the reactants contain 100% Fe, no mullite-type phase was formed for R = Y and Sm, but a sub-group transition to Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 O9-phase was found for R = Bi. Thermogravimetric analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculation results show a decreasing thermal stability in O10-type structure with increasing Fe incorporation; for example, the decomposition temperature is 1142 K for Bi 2 Mn 2 Fe 2 O 10−δ vs. 1217 K for Bi 2 Mn 4 O 10 . On the other hand, Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 O9-type structure is found to be thermally stable up to 1227 K. These findings are explained by electronic structure calculations: (1) as Fe concentration increases, Jahn–Teller distortion results in mid band-gap empty states from unstable Fe 4+ occupied octahedra, which is responsible for the decrease in O10 structure stability; (2) the directional sp orbital hybridization unique to Bi effectively stabilizes the mullite-type structure as Fe replaces Mn. 

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