Photoemission Spectroscopy of Magnetic and Nonmagnetic Impurities on the Surface of theBi2Se3Topological Insulator

T. Valla, Z.-H. Pan, D. Gardner, Y. S. Lee, S. Chu
2012 Physical Review Letters  
Dirac-like surface states on surfaces of topological insulators have a chiral spin structure that suppresses back-scattering and protects the coherence of these states in the presence of non-magnetic scatterers. In contrast, magnetic scatterers should open the back- scattering channel via the spin-flip processes and degrade the state's coherence. We present angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy studies of the electronic structure and the scattering rates upon adsorption of various magnetic
more » ... nd non-magnetic impurities on the surface of Bi_2Se_3, a model topological insulator. We reveal a remarkable insensitivity of the topological surface state to both non-magnetic and magnetic impurities in the low impurity concentration regime. Scattering channels open up with the emergence of hexagonal warping in the high-doping regime, irrespective of the impurity's magnetic moment.
doi:10.1103/physrevlett.108.117601 pmid:22540510 fatcat:3illfwfnfbfc3lt5uh3ptkuvla