Kavli Affiliate: Ke Wang
| First 5 Authors: Cequn Li, Yi-Fan Zhao, Alexander Vera, Omri Lesser, Hemian Yi
| Summary:
The introduction of superconductivity to the Dirac surface states of a
topological insulator leads to a novel state of matter known as a topological
superconductor. A topological superconductor may host Majorana zero modes, the
braiding of which is a cornerstone operation of a topological qubit. The
development of a scalable material platform is key to the realization of
topological quantum computing. Here we report on the growth and properties of
high-quality (Bi,Sb)2Te3/graphene/gallium heterostructures. Our novel synthetic
approach enables atomically sharp layers at both hetero-interfaces, which in
turn promotes proximity-induced superconductivity that originates in the
gallium film. A lithography-free, van der Waals tunnel junction is developed to
perform transport tunneling spectroscopy. Our results show a robust,
proximity-induced superconducting gap formed in the Dirac surface states in
5-10 quintuple-layer (Bi,Sb)2Te3/graphene/gallium heterostructures. The
presence of a single Abrikosov vortex, where the Majorana zero modes are
expected to reside, manifests in discrete conductance changes. The epitaxial
thin-film (Bi,Sb)2Te3/graphene/gallium platform opens up new avenues for
understanding topological superconductivity and realizing Majorana braiding
circuitry.
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