Self-stabilizing temperature driven crossover between topological and non-topological ordered phases in one-dimensional conductors

TL;DR

This paper investigates how temperature influences the transition between topological and non-topological phases in one-dimensional conductors with magnetic moments, revealing a temperature-dependent crossover relevant for magnetic adatom chains.

Contribution

It provides a self-consistent analysis of temperature-driven phase crossover in topological superconductors with magnetic moments, including effects of spin-orbit interaction.

Findings

Existence of a non-topological phase at finite temperature due to entropy gain.

Spin-orbit interaction modifies magnetic order but preserves topological properties.

Temperature induces a crossover between topological and non-topological phases.

Abstract

We present a self-consistent analysis of the topological superconductivity arising from the interaction between self-ordered localized magnetic moments and electrons in one-dimensional conductors in contact with a superconductor. We show that due to a gain in entropy there exists a magnetically ordered yet non-topological phase at finite temperatures that is relevant for systems of magnetic adatom chains on a superconductor. Spin-orbit interaction is taken into account, and we show that it causes a modification of the magnetic order yet without affecting the topological properties.