Emergence of topologically protected states in the MoTe2 Weyl semimetal with layer-stacking order

John A. Schneeloch, Chunruo Duan, Junjie Yang, Jun Liu, Xiaoping Wang, Despina Louca

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Electronic tunability in crystals with weakly bound layers can be achieved through layer stacking order. One such example is MoTe2, where the low-temperature orthorhombic Td phase is topological and host to Weyl quasiparticles. The transition mechanism to the nontrivial topology is elucidated by single-crystal neutron diffraction. Upon cooling from the monoclinic 1T′ to the Td phase, diffuse scattering accompanies the transition, arising from random, in-plane layer displacements, and dissipates upon entering the Td phase. Diffuse scattering is observed only in the H0L plane due to irreversible layer shifts along the c axis that break the centrosymmetry of the monoclinic lattice.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number161105
JournalPhysical Review B
Volume99
Issue number16
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 8 2019
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Condensed Matter Physics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Emergence of topologically protected states in the MoTe2 Weyl semimetal with layer-stacking order'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this