Review: Progress on 2D topological insulators and potential ap-plications in electronic devices

TL;DR

This review summarizes recent advances in 2D topological insulators, highlighting new materials with larger SOC gaps, their topological properties, and potential applications in electronic devices, while discussing future challenges and opportunities.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of 2DTI materials, their topological features, and discusses the prospects for device applications and future research directions.

Findings

Prediction and synthesis of 2DTI with larger SOC gaps

Summary of topological properties like quantum spin Hall effect

Discussion of potential electronic device applications

Abstract

Two-dimensional topological insulators (2DTI) have attracted increasing attention during the past few years. New 2DTI with increasing larger spin-orbit coupling (SOC) gaps have been predicted by theoretical calculations and some of them have been synthesized experimentally. In this review, the 2DTI, ranging from single element graphene-like materials to bi-elemental TMDs and to multi-elemental materials, with different thicknesses, structures and phases, have been summarized and discussed. The topological properties (especially the quantum spin Hall effect and Dirac fermion feature) and potential applications have been summarized. This review also points out the challenge and opportuni-ties for future 2DTI study, especially on the device applications based on the topological properties.