Mitrofanovite Pt3Te4: A Topological Metal with Termination-Dependent Surface Band Structure and Strong Spin Polarization

By combining spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy, and density functional theory, we discover surface-termination-dependent topological electronic states in the recently discovered mitrofanovite Pt3Te4.
J. Fujii et al., ACS Nano, 15, 9, 14786 (2021)

Here, we explore the electronic properties of Pt3Te4 by means of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM)/spectroscopy (STS) and spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (spin-ARPES) in conjugation with density functional theory (DFT). We demonstrate that mitrofanovite is a topological metal hosting spin-polarized surface states. Interestingly, we find that Pt3Te4 has two distinct surface terminations with radically different electronic properties. These distinct terminations are observed at different terraces on the same face of the cleaved crystal. Despite differences in the corresponding electronic band structure, both surface terminations host spin-polarized states, exhibiting typical polarization reversal across the zone center, characteristic of spin-momentum locking. Thus, mitrofanovite offers termination-dependent electronic and surface properties enabling tunable device functionalities for nanoelectronics, spintronics, optoelectronics, and plasmonic applications.

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