One-dimensional topological superconductors host Majorana zero modes (MZMs), the non-local property of which could be exploited for quantum computing applications. Spin- polarized scanning tunneling microscopy measurements show that MZMs realized in self- assembled Fe chains on the surface of Pb have a spin polarization that exceeds that due to the magnetism of these chains. This feature, captured by our model calculations, is a direct consequence of the nonlocality of the Hilbert space of MZMs emerging from a topological band structure. Our study establishes spin polarization measurements as a diagnostic tool to uniquely distinguish topological MZMs from trivial in-gap states of a superconductor.
@article{arxiv.1710.04662,
title = {Distinguishing a Majorana zero mode using spin resolved measurements},
author = {Sangjun Jeon and Yonglong Xie and Jian Li and Zhijun Wang and B. Andrei Bernevig and Ali Yazdani},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1710.04662},
year = {2017}
}