Publication Date:
2014-11-01
Description:
Nature Physics 10, 815 (2014). doi:10.1038/nphys3084 Authors: Ying-Shuang Fu, M. Kawamura, K. Igarashi, H. Takagi, T. Hanaguri & T. Sasagawa Massless Dirac electrons in condensed matter are, unlike conventional electrons, described by two-component wavefunctions associated with the spin degrees of freedom in the surface state of topological insulators. Hence, the ability to observe the two-component wavefunction is useful for exploring novel spin phenomena. Here we show that the two-component nature is manifest in Landau levels, the degeneracy of which is lifted by a Coulomb potential. Using spectroscopic-imaging scanning tunnelling microscopy, we visualize energy and spatial structures of Landau levels in Bi2Se3, a prototypical topological insulator. The observed Landau-level splitting and internal structures of Landau orbits are distinct from those in a conventional electron system and are well reproduced by a two-component model Dirac Hamiltonian. Our model further predicts energy-dependent spin-magnetization textures in a potential variation and provides a way for manipulating spins in the topological surface state.
Print ISSN:
1745-2473
Electronic ISSN:
1745-2481
Topics:
Physics
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