2009/09/04 by Kenjiro K. Gomes, Wonhee Ko, Gomes, Kenjiro K. +10 · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #FOS: Physical sciences #Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) #Quantum and electron transport phenomena #Quantum many-body systems #Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el) #Topological Materials and Phenomena #cond-mat.mes-hall #cond-mat.str-el
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.0909.0921
Updated from original (copy of earlier journal submission) to include references and context to latest published and posted experiments involving STM and ARPES
openalex publication_date 2009/09/04 · arxiv created 2009/09/24 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The motion of a relativistic particle is linked to its spin by the Dirac equation. Remarkably, electrons in two-dimensional materials can mimic such Dirac particles but must always appear in pairs of opposite spin chirality. Using topological ideas of chiral boundary electrons wrapping a three-dimensional crystal with tuned spin-orbit coupling, we show that elusive unpaired Dirac fermions exist on the surface of a topological insulator parent matrix, pure antimony. Using scanning tunneling microscopy and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy we image coherent quantum interference between these particles, map their helical spin texture, and ultimately observe a transition to a single Dirac fermion distinguished by backscattering suppression via Berry phase interference. The robust dynamics of these unique spin-polarized carriers envisage future applications in spintronics and topological quantum computation.