Nature of native atomic defects in ${\mathrm{ZrTe}}_{5}$ and their impact on the low-energy electronic structure

Salzmann, Björn; Pulkkinen, Aki; Hildebrand, Baptiste; Jaouen, Thomas; Zhang, S. N.; Martino, E.; Li, Q.; Gu, G.; Berger, Helmuth; Yazyev, O. V.; Akrap, Ana; Monney, Claude

doi:10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.4.114201

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Journal article

Nature of native atomic defects in ${\mathrm{ZrTe}}_{5}$ and their impact on the low-energy electronic structure

Salzmann, Björn Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
Pulkkinen, Aki Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland - School of Engineering Science, LUT University, FI-53850 Lappeenranta, Finland
Hildebrand, Baptiste Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
Jaouen, Thomas Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland - Univ Rennes, CNRS, Institut de Physique de Rennes - UMR 6251, F-35000 Rennes, France
Zhang, S. N. Institute of Physics, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland - National Centre for Computational Design and Discovery of Novel Materials MARVEL, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Martino, E. Institute of Physics, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Li, Q. Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, USA
Gu, G. Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, USA
Berger, Helmuth Institut de Physique des Nanostructures, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Yazyev, O. V. Institute of Physics, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland - National Centre for Computational Design and Discovery of Novel Materials MARVEL, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Akrap, Ana Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
Monney, Claude Département de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Université de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland

10.11.2020

Published in:

Physical Review Materials. - 2020, vol. 4, no. 11, p. 114201

English Over the past decades, investigations of the anomalous low-energy electronic properties of ZrTe5 have reached a wide array of conclusions. An open question is the growth method's impact on the stoichiometry of ZrTe5 samples, especially given the very small density of states near its chemical potential. Here we report on high- resolution scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy measurements performed on samples grown via different methods. Using density functional theory calculations, we identify the most prevalent types of atomic defects on the surface of ZrTe5, namely, Te vacancies and intercalated Zr atoms. Finally, we precisely quantify their density and outline their role as ionized defects in the anomalous resistivity of this material.

Faculty

Faculté des sciences et de médecine

Department

Département de Physique

Language