Electron–phonon coupling in topological insulator Bi_2Se_3 thin films with different substrates

Broadband transient reflectivity traces were measured for Bi_2 Se_3 thin films with various substrates via a 400 nm pump–white-light-probe setup. We have verified the existence of a second Dirac surface state in Bi_2 Se_3 and qualitatively located it by properly analyzing the traces acquired at different probe wavelengths. Referring to the band structure of Bi_2 Se_3, the relaxation mechanisms for photo-excited electrons with different energies are also revealed and studied. Our results show a second rise of the transient reflection signal at the time scale of several picoseconds. The types of substrate can also significantly affect the dynamics of the rising signal. This phenomenon is attributed to the effect of lattice heating and coherent phonon processes. The mechanism study in this work will benefit the fabrication of high-performance photonic devices based on topological insulators.     

Experimental Evidence of Topological Surface States in Mg_3Bi_2 Films Grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Nodal line semimetal(NLS) is a new quantum state hosting one-dimensional closed loops formed by the crossing of two bands. The so-called type-Ⅱ NLS means that these two crossing bands have the same sign in their slopes along the radial direction of the loop, which requires that the crossing bands are either right-tilted or left-tilted at the same time. According to the theoretical prediction, Mg_3Bi_2 is an ideal candidate for studying the type-Ⅱ NLS by tuning its spin-orbit coupling(SOC). High-quality Mg3 Bi2 films are grown by molecular beam epitaxy(MBE). By in-situ angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy(ARPES), a pair of surface resonance bands around the■ point are clearly seen. This shows that Mg_3Bi_2 films grown by MBE are Mg(1)-terminated by comparing the ARPES spectra with the first principles calculations results. Moreover, the temperature dependent weak anti-localization effect in Mg_3Bi_2 films is observed under magneto-transport measurements, which shows clear two-dimensional(2 D) e-e scattering characteristics by fitting with the Hikami–Larkin–Nagaoka model. Therefore, by combining with ARPES, magneto-transport measurements and the first principles calculations, this work proves that Mg_3Bi_2 is a semimetal with topological surface states. This paves the way for Mg_3Bi_2 to be used as an ideal material platform to study the exotic features of type-Ⅱ nodal line semimetals and the topological phase transition by tuning its SOC.