Parallel magnetic field driven quantum phase transition in a thin topological insulator film

Details Parallel magnetic field driven quantum phase transition in a thin topological insulator film Parallel magnetic field driven quantum phase transition in a thin topological insulator film

2011-02-02

arxiv.org/abs/1102.0349v2

Phys. Rev. B 83, 245428 (2011)

Physics

Condensed Matter

Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics

4+ pages, 1 figure, published version

Scientific paper

It is well-known that helical surface states of a three-dimensional topological insulator (TI) do not respond to a static in-plane magnetic field. Formally this occurs because the in-plane magnetic field appears as a vector potential in the Dirac Hamiltonian of the surface states and can thus be removed by a gauge transformation of the surface electron wavefunctions. Here we show that when the top and bottom surfaces of a thin film of TI are hybridized and the Fermi level is in the hybridization gap, a nonzero diamagnetic response appears. Moreover, a quantum phase transition occurs at a finite critical value of the parallel field from an insulator with a diamagnetic response to a semimetal with a vanishing response to the parallel field.

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