We investigate the robustness of {\it virtual} topological states -- topological phases away from the Fermi energy -- against the electron-electron interaction and band filling. As a case study, we employ a realistic model to investigate the properties of vacancy-driven topological phases in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and establish a connection between the degree of localization of topological wave functions, the vacancy density, and the electron-electron interaction strength with the topological phase robustness. We demonstrate that electron-electron interactions play a crucial role in degrading topological phases thereby determining the validity of single-particle approximations for topological insulator phases. Our findings can be naturally extended to {\it virtual} topological phases of a wide range of materials.
@article{arxiv.2412.08607,
title = {Interacting Virtual Topological Phases in Defect-Rich 2D Materials},
author = {Felipe Crasto de Lima and Roberto H. Miwa and Caio Lewenkopf and Adalberto Fazzio},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2412.08607},
year = {2025}
}