Observation of anisotropic Dirac cones in the topological material Ti2Te2P

TL;DR

This study reveals anisotropic surface Dirac cones in the topological material Ti2Te2P using ARPES and calculations, highlighting its complex topological phases and potential for anisotropic electronic properties.

Contribution

First demonstration of anisotropic surface Dirac cones in Ti2Te2P, combining experimental ARPES data with first-principles calculations to explore its topological characteristics.

Findings

Anisotropic surface Dirac cones observed at the M-point.

Material confirmed as topologically non-trivial with multiple phases.

Presence of nodal-line like features in bulk bands.

Abstract

Anisotropic bulk Dirac (or Weyl) cones in three dimensional systems have recently gained intense research interest as they are examples of materials with tilted Dirac (or Weyl) cones indicatig the violation of Lorentz invariance. In contrast, the studies on anisotropic surface Dirac cones in topological materials which contribute to anisotropic carrier mobility have been limited. By employing angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and first-principles calculations, we reveal the anisotropic surface Dirac dispersion in a tetradymite material Ti2Te2P on the (001) plane of the Brillioun zone. We observe the quasi-elliptical Fermi pockets at the M -point of the Brillouin zone forming the anisotropic surface Dirac cones. Our calculations of the Z2 indices confirm that the system is topologically non-trivial with multiple topological phases in the same material. In addition, the observed nodal-line like feature formed by bulk bands makes this system topologically rich.