We discuss the magnetic and topological properties of bulk crystals and quasi-two-dimensional thin films formed by stacking intrinsic magnetized topological insulator ( for example Mn(SbxBi1−x)2X4 with X = Se,Te, including MnBi2Te4) septuple layers and topological insulator quintuple layers in arbitrary order. Our analysis makes use of a simplified model that retains only Dirac-cone degrees of freedom on both surfaces of each septuple or quintuple layer. We demonstrate the model's applicability and estimate its parameters by comparing with {\it ab initio } density-functional-theory(DFT) calculations. We then employ the coupled Dirac cone model to provide an explanation for the dependence of thin-film properties, particularly the presence or absence of the quantum anomalous Hall effect, on film thickness, magnetic configuration, and stacking arrangement, and to comment on the design of Weyl superlattices.
@article{arxiv.2008.01941,
title = {Magnetized Topological Insulator Multilayers},
author = {Chao Lei and Shu Chen and Allan H. MacDonald},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2008.01941},
year = {2020}
}