Emerging chiral edge states from the confinement of a magnetic Weyl semimetal in Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$

TL;DR

This paper explores how the quantum anomalous Hall effect can emerge in thin films of magnetic Weyl semimetals, specifically Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$, due to finite size effects, revealing new chiral edge states and potential for topological applications.

Contribution

It demonstrates the emergence of QAHE in 2D limits of magnetic WSMs, with specific states depending on stoichiometry, and explains chiral edge states observed experimentally.

Findings

Two QAHE states in 2D Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ with different Chern numbers

A sizable band gap of 0.05 eV in the insulating QAHE state

Chiral states in step edges consistent with experimental observations

Abstract

The quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) and magnetic Weyl semimetals (WSMs) are topological states induced by intrinsic magnetic moments and spin-orbit coupling. Their similarity suggests the possibility of achieving the QAHE by dimensional confinement of a magnetic WSM along one direction. In this study, we investigate the emergence of the QAHE in the two-dimensional (2D) limit of magnetic WSMs due to finite size effects in thin films and step-edges. We demonstrate the feasibility of this approach with effective models and real materials. To this end, we have chosen the layered magnetic WSM Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$, which features a large anomalous Hall conductivity and anomalous Hall angle in its 3D bulk, as our material candidate. In the 2D limit of Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ two QAHE states exist depending on the stoichiometry of the 2D layer. One is a semimetal with a Chern number of 6, and the other is an insulator with a Chern number of 3. The latter has a band gap of 0.05 eV, which is much larger than that in magnetically doped topological insulators. Our findings naturally explain the existence of chiral states in step edges of bulk Co$_3$Sn$_2$S$_2$ which habe been reported in a recent experiment at $T = 4K$ and present a realistic avenue to realize QAH states in thin films of magnetic WSMs.