Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures

There is great interest in the study of topological insulator-based heterostructures due to expected emerging phenomena. However, a challenge of topological insulator (TI) research is the contribution of bulk conduction to the TI surface states. Both strain engineering and thickness control routes,...

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Main Authors: Valentina Gallardo, Bárbara Arce, Francisco Muñoz, Rodolfo San Martín, Irina Zubritskaya, Paula Giraldo-Gallo, Caleb Z. Zerger, Hari C. Manoharan, Carolina Parra
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Results in Physics
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211379724007435
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author Valentina Gallardo
Bárbara Arce
Francisco Muñoz
Rodolfo San Martín
Irina Zubritskaya
Paula Giraldo-Gallo
Caleb Z. Zerger
Hari C. Manoharan
Carolina Parra
author_facet Valentina Gallardo
Bárbara Arce
Francisco Muñoz
Rodolfo San Martín
Irina Zubritskaya
Paula Giraldo-Gallo
Caleb Z. Zerger
Hari C. Manoharan
Carolina Parra
author_sort Valentina Gallardo
collection DOAJ
description There is great interest in the study of topological insulator-based heterostructures due to expected emerging phenomena. However, a challenge of topological insulator (TI) research is the contribution of bulk conduction to the TI surface states. Both strain engineering and thickness control routes, which have been proposed to compensate for bulk doping, can be accessed through the use of nano-heterostructures consisting of topological insulator nanostructures grown on 2D materials. In this work, we report the synthesis of TI/graphene nano-heterostructures based on Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 nanoplatelets (NPs) grown on single-layer graphene. Various techniques were used to characterize this system in terms of morphology, thickness, composition, and crystal quality. We found that most of the obtained NPs are mainly <30 nm thick with thickness-dependent crystal quality, observed by Raman measurements. Thinner NPs (1 or 2 quintuple layers) tend to replicate the topography of the underlying single-layer graphene, according to roughness analysis. Finally, we show preliminary studies of their band structure obtained by Low Temperature Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy, and by Density Functional Theory. We observe a highly negative ED value which can be attributed to the presence of defects.
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spelling doaj-art-3b928990181c42fe9e5d61b88c5552a12024-12-19T10:53:46ZengElsevierResults in Physics2211-37972024-12-0167108058Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructuresValentina Gallardo0Bárbara Arce1Francisco Muñoz2Rodolfo San Martín3Irina Zubritskaya4Paula Giraldo-Gallo5Caleb Z. Zerger6Hari C. Manoharan7Carolina Parra8Departamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Avenida España 1680, Valparaíso, ChileDepartamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Avenida España 1680, Valparaíso, ChileDepartamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, 9170124 Santiago, ChileDepartamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Avenida España 1680, Valparaíso, ChileDepartment of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, United StatesDepartment of Physics, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá 111711, ColombiaDepartment of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, United StatesDepartment of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, United StatesDepartamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Avenida España 1680, Valparaíso, Chile; Centro Científico Tecnológico de Valparaíso CCTVaL Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Valparaíso 2390123, Chile; Corresponding author.There is great interest in the study of topological insulator-based heterostructures due to expected emerging phenomena. However, a challenge of topological insulator (TI) research is the contribution of bulk conduction to the TI surface states. Both strain engineering and thickness control routes, which have been proposed to compensate for bulk doping, can be accessed through the use of nano-heterostructures consisting of topological insulator nanostructures grown on 2D materials. In this work, we report the synthesis of TI/graphene nano-heterostructures based on Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 nanoplatelets (NPs) grown on single-layer graphene. Various techniques were used to characterize this system in terms of morphology, thickness, composition, and crystal quality. We found that most of the obtained NPs are mainly <30 nm thick with thickness-dependent crystal quality, observed by Raman measurements. Thinner NPs (1 or 2 quintuple layers) tend to replicate the topography of the underlying single-layer graphene, according to roughness analysis. Finally, we show preliminary studies of their band structure obtained by Low Temperature Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy, and by Density Functional Theory. We observe a highly negative ED value which can be attributed to the presence of defects.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211379724007435
spellingShingle Valentina Gallardo
Bárbara Arce
Francisco Muñoz
Rodolfo San Martín
Irina Zubritskaya
Paula Giraldo-Gallo
Caleb Z. Zerger
Hari C. Manoharan
Carolina Parra
Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
Results in Physics
title Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
title_full Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
title_fullStr Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
title_full_unstemmed Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
title_short Exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator/graphene nano-heterostructures
title_sort exploring structural and electronic properties of topological insulator graphene nano heterostructures
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211379724007435
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