Wiedemann-Franz-type relation between shot noise and thermal conduction of Majorana surface states in a three-dimensional topological superconductor

TL;DR

This paper establishes a Wiedemann-Franz-type relation linking thermal conductance and shot noise in Majorana surface states of a 3D topological superconductor, providing a new electrical detection method for charge-neutral Majorana modes.

Contribution

It derives a universal relation between thermal conductance and shot noise for Majorana surface states, independent of microscopic details, enabling electrical detection of Majorana modes.

Findings

The ratio G_thermal/P_shot equals (L T)/(e V) times the Lorenz number.

Universal shot-noise power scales with surface aspect ratio W/L.

The relation holds due to electron-hole and time-reversal symmetries.

Abstract

We compare the thermal conductance $G_{\rm thermal}$ (at temperature $T$) and the electrical shot noise power $P_{\rm shot}$ (at bias voltage $V\gg k_{\rm B}T/e$) of Majorana fermions on the two-dimensional surface of a three-dimensional topological superconductor. We present analytical and numerical calculations to demonstrate that, for a local coupling between the superconductor and metal contacts, $G_{\rm thermal}/P_{\rm shot}= {\cal L}T/eV$ (with ${\cal L}$ the Lorenz number). This relation is ensured by the combination of electron-hole and time-reversal symmetries, irrespective of the microscopics of the surface Hamiltonian, and provides for a purely electrical way to detect the charge-neutral Majorana surface states. A surface of aspect ratio $W/L\gg 1$ has the universal shot-noise power $P_{\rm shot}=(W/L)\times (e^2/h)\times (eV/2\pi)$