Related papers: Breakdown of helical edge state topologically prot…
The helical edge states of time-reversal invariant two-dimensional topological insulators are protected against backscattering in idealized models. In more realistic scenarios with a shallow confining potential at the sample boundary,…
Time reversal symmetric topological insulators are generically robust with respect to weak local interaction, unless symmetry breaking transitions take place. Using dynamical mean-field theory we solve an interacting model of quantum spin…
Recent topological band theory distinguishes electronic band insulators with respect to various symmetries and topological invariants, most commonly, the time reversal symmetry and the $\rm Z_2$ invariant. The interface of two topologically…
The realization of quantum spin Hall (QSH) effect in HgTe quantum wells (QWs) is considered a milestone in the discovery of topological insulators. The QSH edge states are predicted to allow current to flow at the edges of an insulating…
The search for topologically non-trivial states of matter has become an important goal for condensed matter physics. Recently, a new class of topological insulators has been proposed. These topological insulators have an insulating gap in…
We study the suppression of the conductance quantization in quantum spin Hall systems by a combined effect of electronic interactions and edge disorder, that is ubiquitous in exfoliated and CVD grown 2D materials. We show that the interplay…
We study backscattering of electrons and conductance suppression in a helical edge channel in two-dimensional topological insulators with broken axial spin symmetry in the presence of nonmagnetic point defects that create bound states. In…
One of the proposed ground states of monolayer WTe$_2$, a two-dimensional topological insulator, is an excitonic condensate. However, time-reversal preserving and breaking solutions are competing at the mean-field level of analysis, and it…
It is a conventional wisdom that the helical edge states of quantum spin Hall (QSH) insulator are particularly stable due to the topological protection of time-reversal symmetry. Here, we report the first experimental observation of an…
Two-dimensional topological insulators are characterized by gapped bulk states and gapless helical edge states, i.e. time-reversal symmetric edge states accommodating a pair of counter-propagating electrons. An external magnetic field…
Studying the influence of breaking time-reversal symmetry on topological insulator surface states is an important problem of current interest in condensed matter physics and could provide a route toward proof-of-concept spintronic devices…
The gapless edge modes of the Quantum Spin Hall insulator form a helical liquid in which the direction of motion along the edge is determined by the spin orientation of the electrons. In order to probe the Luttinger liquid physics of these…
The quantization of conductance in the presence of non-magnetic point defects is a consequence of topological protection and the spin-momentum locking of helical edge states in two-dimensional topological insulators. This protection ensures…
We demonstrate that a combination of disorder and interactions in a two-dimensional bulk topological insulator can generically drive its helical edge insulating. We establish this within the framework of helical Luttinger liquid theory and…
Transport in an ideal two-dimensional quantum spin Hall device is dominated by the counterpropagating edge states of electrons with opposite spins, giving the universal value of the conductance, $2e^2/h$. We study the effect on the…
We study the conductance of a time-reversal symmetric helical electronic edge coupled antiferromagnetically to a magnetic impurity, employing analytical and numerical approaches. The impurity can reduce the perfect conductance $G_0$ of a…
Helical edge states in quantum spin Hall (QSH) materials are central building blocks of topological matter design and engineering. Despite their principal topological protection against elastic backscattering, the level of operational…
Due to time-reversal symmetry (TRS), two dimensional topological insulators support counter-propagating helical edge modes. Here we show that, unlike the infinitely sharp edge potential utilized in traditional calculations, an…
Localization of the helical edge states in quantum spin Hall insulators requires breaking time reversal invariance. In experiments this is naturally implemented by applying a weak magnetic field B. We propse a model based on scattering…
A topological insulator is characterized by a dichotomy between the interior and the edge of a finite system: While the bulk has a non-zero energy gap, the edges are forced to sustain excitations traversing these gaps. Originally proposed…