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Observation of topological superconductivity on the surface of an iron-based superconductor.

Peng ZhangKoichiro YajiTakahiro HashimotoYuichi OtaTakeshi KondoKozo OkazakiZhi-Jun WangJinsheng WenG D GuHong DingShik Shin
Published in: Science (New York, N.Y.) (2018)
Topological superconductors are predicted to host exotic Majorana states that obey non-Abelian statistics and can be used to implement a topological quantum computer. Most of the proposed topological superconductors are realized in difficult-to-fabricate heterostructures at very low temperatures. By using high-resolution spin-resolved and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy, we find that the iron-based superconductor FeTe1-x Se x (x = 0.45; superconducting transition temperature Tc = 14.5 kelvin) hosts Dirac-cone-type spin-helical surface states at the Fermi level; the surface states exhibit an s-wave superconducting gap below Tc Our study shows that the surface states of FeTe0.55Se0.45 are topologically superconducting, providing a simple and possibly high-temperature platform for realizing Majorana states.
Keyphrases
  • high resolution
  • room temperature
  • high temperature
  • single molecule
  • molecular dynamics
  • machine learning
  • tandem mass spectrometry
  • high speed
  • single cell
  • liquid chromatography