Visualization of an axion insulating state at the transition between 2 chiral quantum anomalous Hall states [Physics]

Quantum-relativistic materials often host electronic phenomena with exotic spatial distributions. In particular, quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) insulators feature topological boundary currents whose chirality is determined by the magnetization orientation. However, understanding the microscopic nature of edge vs. bulk currents has remained a challenge due to the emergence of multidomain states...

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - July 15, 2019 Category: Science Authors: Monica Allen, Yongtao Cui, Eric Yue Ma, Masataka Mogi, Minoru Kawamura, Ion Cosma Fulga, David Goldhaber-Gordon, Yoshinori Tokura, Zhi-Xun Shen Tags: Physical Sciences Source Type: research