Weyl spin-momentum locking in a chiral topological semimetal

Jonas A. Krieger, Samuel Stolz, Iñigo Robredo, Kaustuv Manna, Emily C. McFarlane, Mihir Date, Banabir Pal, Jiabao Yang, Eduardo B. Guedes, J. Hugo Dil, Craig M. Polley, Mats Leandersson, Chandra Shekhar, Horst Borrmann, Qun Yang, Mao Lin, Vladimir N. Strocov, Marco Caputo, Matthew D. Watson, Timur K. Kim, Cephise Cacho, Federico Mazzola, Jun Fujii, Ivana Vobornik, Stuart S. P. Parkin, Barry Bradlyn, Claudia Felser, Maia G. Vergniory and Niels B. M. Schröter ()
Additional contact information
Jonas A. Krieger: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Samuel Stolz: University of California
Iñigo Robredo: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Kaustuv Manna: Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi
Emily C. McFarlane: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Mihir Date: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Banabir Pal: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Jiabao Yang: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Eduardo B. Guedes: Paul Scherrer Institute
J. Hugo Dil: Paul Scherrer Institute
Craig M. Polley: Lund University
Mats Leandersson: Lund University
Chandra Shekhar: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Horst Borrmann: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Qun Yang: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Mao Lin: University of Illinois
Vladimir N. Strocov: Paul Scherrer Institute
Marco Caputo: Paul Scherrer Institute
Matthew D. Watson: Harwell Science and Innovation Campus
Timur K. Kim: Harwell Science and Innovation Campus
Cephise Cacho: Harwell Science and Innovation Campus
Federico Mazzola: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche
Jun Fujii: Area Science Park
Ivana Vobornik: Area Science Park
Stuart S. P. Parkin: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik
Barry Bradlyn: University of Illinois
Claudia Felser: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Maia G. Vergniory: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids
Niels B. M. Schröter: Max Planck Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Spin-orbit coupling in noncentrosymmetric crystals leads to spin-momentum locking – a directional relationship between an electron’s spin angular momentum and its linear momentum. Isotropic orthogonal Rashba spin-momentum locking has been studied for decades, while its counterpart, isotropic parallel Weyl spin-momentum locking has remained elusive in experiments. Theory predicts that Weyl spin-momentum locking can only be realized in structurally chiral cubic crystals in the vicinity of Kramers-Weyl or multifold fermions. Here, we use spin- and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to evidence Weyl spin-momentum locking of multifold fermions in the chiral topological semimetal PtGa. We find that the electron spin of the Fermi arc surface states is orthogonal to their Fermi surface contour for momenta close to the projection of the bulk multifold fermion at the Γ point, which is consistent with Weyl spin-momentum locking of the latter. The direct measurement of the bulk spin texture of the multifold fermion at the R point also displays Weyl spin-momentum locking. The discovery of Weyl spin-momentum locking may lead to energy-efficient memory devices and Josephson diodes based on chiral topological semimetals.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47976-0

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