Floquet Engineering of Gyrotropic Magnetic Effect in Black Phosphorus Using Bicircular Light

Concepts de base

This research paper demonstrates that bicircular light (BCL) can be used to induce a gyrotropic magnetic effect (GME) in compressed black phosphorus, offering a promising avenue for controlling and studying this phenomenon.

Résumé

• Bibliographic Information: Zhan, F., Jin, X., Ma, D.-S., Fan, J., Yu, P., Xu, D.-H., & Wang, R. (2024). Gyrotropic Magnetic Effect in Black Phosphorus Irradiated with Bicircular Light. arXiv:2411.02916v1 [cond-mat.mtrl-sci].

• Research Objective: This study investigates the potential of Floquet engineering with BCL to generate and manipulate the gyrotropic magnetic effect (GME) in nodal line semimetals, specifically focusing on compressed black phosphorus.

• Methodology: The researchers employed first-principles calculations within the density-functional theory framework and combined them with Floquet theory to analyze the electronic and topological properties of compressed black phosphorus under BCL irradiation. They also utilized a low-energy effective model to understand the symmetry breaking mechanisms induced by BCL.

• Key Findings:

  • BCL irradiation can induce a topological phase transition in compressed black phosphorus, transforming it from a nodal line semimetal to a Weyl semimetal.
  • The polarization state of BCL allows for precise control over the energy and momentum separation of Weyl nodes with opposite chirality.
  • This controlled symmetry breaking enables the generation of a gyrotropic current in the presence of a slowly oscillating magnetic field, a manifestation of the GME.
  • The magnitude of the gyrotropic current in compressed black phosphorus under BCL irradiation is predicted to be significantly larger than previously studied materials, making it a promising candidate for experimental observation.

• Main Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of Floquet engineering with BCL as a powerful tool for manipulating topological phases and generating exotic quantum phenomena like the GME. The authors suggest that compressed black phosphorus, with its large predicted gyrotropic current, is an ideal platform for experimentally verifying these theoretical predictions.

• Significance: This research contributes significantly to the fields of condensed matter physics and materials science by providing a novel method for controlling topological states and exploring the GME, a phenomenon with potential applications in spintronics and quantum computing.

• Limitations and Future Research: While the study provides a comprehensive theoretical framework, experimental verification of the predicted GME in compressed black phosphorus is crucial. Further research could explore the influence of temperature, impurities, and other external factors on the observed GME. Additionally, investigating other materials that could exhibit similar BCL-induced GME would be beneficial.

Stats

The gyrotropic current in BCL-driven BP is predicted to lie within an experimentally accessible µA/µm2 range when the light intensity eA0/¯h = 0.01 ˚A−1 and polarization state α = π/2.
This current magnitude is three orders of magnitude larger than that predicted in Cd3As2.
The study used a pump photon energy of ¯hω = 1 eV and an amplitude of the BCL of eA0/¯h = 0.01 ˚A−1, corresponding to an electric field peak strength of 9.96×107 V/m (or energy density of 2.63×109 W/cm2).
The laser fluence used in the simulation is 0.24 mJ/cm2, which is far below the damage threshold for laser ablation in BP.

Citations

"Floquet engineering with BCL irradiation offers a fascinating strategy to generate and control the GME current in NLSMs."
"The compressed BP was demonstrated as a typical NLSM both in theories and experiments."
"The current in BCL-driven BP is predicted to lie within an experimentally accessible µA/µm2 range... which is three orders of magnitude larger than that predicted in Cd3As2 [49]."

Idées clés tirées de

Gyrotropic Magnetic Effect in Black Phosphorus Irradiated with Bicircular Light

by Fangyang Zha... à arxiv.org 11-06-2024

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2411.02916.pdf

Questions plus approfondies

What are the potential technological applications of a controllable gyrotropic magnetic effect, particularly in fields like spintronics or quantum computing?

The ability to control the gyrotropic magnetic effect (GME) using bicircular light (BCL), as described in the study, holds significant potential for technological applications, particularly in spintronics and quantum computing:
Spintronics:

Spin Current Generation and Manipulation: The GME enables the generation of spin currents, a flow of angular momentum carried by electrons, without the need for external magnetic fields or magnetic materials. This is a key goal in spintronics, which aims to utilize electron spin for information processing and storage. BCL offers a contactless and potentially energy-efficient way to generate and manipulate these spin currents, paving the way for novel spintronic devices.
Ultrafast Switching: The ultrafast nature of light-matter interactions allows for rapid control over the GME. This could lead to the development of ultrafast spintronic devices, such as high-speed spin transistors and memory elements, operating at terahertz frequencies.
Valleytronics: In materials like black phosphorus, BCL can selectively excite electrons in specific valleys, regions in momentum space with distinct properties. This valley-dependent GME control opens possibilities for valleytronics, where information is encoded and processed using the valley degree of freedom.
Quantum Computing:

Topological Qubit Manipulation: Weyl semimetals, the topological phase induced by BCL in this study, host exotic quasiparticles with potential for robust quantum computing. The controllable GME could be harnessed to manipulate the state of these quasiparticles, forming the basis for topological qubits with enhanced coherence times.
Quantum Information Processing: The GME-induced spin currents could be utilized for quantum information processing. For instance, the flow of spin could be used to transfer quantum information between different parts of a quantum device.
Challenges and Future Directions:
While promising, realizing these applications requires overcoming challenges such as:

Material Optimization: Identifying materials with large GME responses and suitable optical properties for efficient BCL control is crucial.
Device Integration: Integrating BCL-based GME control into functional spintronic and quantum devices poses fabrication and engineering challenges.

Could the theoretical framework presented in this study be extended to predict and manipulate other exotic quantum phenomena beyond the gyrotropic magnetic effect?

Yes, the theoretical framework presented, combining Floquet theory with first-principles calculations to study the effects of BCL irradiation on topological materials, has the potential to be extended to predict and manipulate other exotic quantum phenomena beyond the GME. Here's how:

Engineering Topological Phases: The study demonstrates that BCL can drive topological phase transitions, specifically from a nodal-line semimetal to a Weyl semimetal. This approach can be generalized to explore other light-induced topological phases, such as Floquet topological insulators, Dirac semimetals, and even more exotic phases with higher-order topological invariants.
Nonlinear Optical Responses: The study focuses on the linear response regime. Investigating nonlinear optical responses in these systems under BCL irradiation could reveal novel phenomena like high-harmonic generation, nonreciprocal light propagation, and photogalvanic effects with unique symmetries.
Light-Matter Coupling: The framework can be extended to study systems with strong light-matter coupling, where the interaction between light and matter cannot be treated perturbatively. This could lead to the discovery of novel Floquet-polariton states with exotic properties.
Dynamic Control: The time-periodic nature of BCL allows for dynamic control over material properties. This opens avenues for exploring time-dependent topological phenomena, such as Floquet time crystals and dynamically driven topological phase transitions.
By extending this framework, researchers can delve deeper into the interplay between light, topology, and quantum phenomena, potentially uncovering new physics and paving the way for novel applications in areas like optoelectronics, quantum information science, and energy harvesting.

How might the inherent instability of black phosphorus in ambient conditions pose challenges for experimental realization and potential applications of this discovery, and what strategies could be employed to mitigate these challenges?

Black phosphorus, while possessing remarkable electronic and optical properties, is known to degrade rapidly under ambient conditions due to its reactivity with oxygen and moisture. This instability poses significant challenges for experimental realization and practical applications of the BCL-induced GME in black phosphorus.
Challenges:

Material Degradation: Exposure to air leads to the formation of oxides and other degradation products on the surface of black phosphorus, compromising its electronic and optical properties. This degradation reduces the lifetime of devices and hinders the observation of the GME.
Performance Degradation: The degradation products can trap charge carriers, reduce carrier mobility, and introduce scattering centers, all of which negatively impact the performance of devices relying on the GME.
Reproducibility and Reliability: The unpredictable nature of degradation makes it challenging to obtain consistent and reproducible experimental results, hindering the development of reliable devices.
Mitigation Strategies:
Several strategies can be employed to mitigate the instability of black phosphorus:

Encapsulation: Encapsulating black phosphorus between protective layers of inert materials, such as hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) or atomically thin oxides, can effectively isolate it from the environment and prevent degradation.
Passivation: Surface passivation techniques, like functionalizing the black phosphorus surface with chemically inert groups, can reduce its reactivity with air and moisture.
Controlled Environments: Performing experiments and operating devices in controlled environments, such as vacuum chambers or inert gas atmospheres, can minimize exposure to reactive species.
Chemical Functionalization: Modifying black phosphorus chemically, for example, by doping or creating stable derivatives, can enhance its stability while preserving its desirable electronic properties.
Two-Dimensional Heterostructures: Integrating black phosphorus into van der Waals heterostructures with other stable 2D materials can provide both protection and new functionalities.
Outlook:
Addressing the stability issue is crucial for unlocking the full potential of black phosphorus in GME-based devices. The ongoing research into these mitigation strategies promises to pave the way for the development of robust and practical applications of this exciting discovery.