Higher Order Topological Superconductivity in Magnet-Superconductor Hybrid Systems

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that higher order topological superconductivity can be realized in 2D magnet-superconductor hybrid systems through magnetic stacking, enabling tunable topological phases and potential quantum computing applications.

Contribution

It introduces a method to achieve HOTSC in MSH systems via magnetic stacking, allowing phase control and Majorana corner modes for quantum computing.

Findings

HOTSC can be realized in 2D MSH systems with stacked magnetic structures.

Magnetic stacking sensitivity enables tuning between trivial and topological phases.

Majorana corner modes can be used for measurement-based topological quantum computing.

Abstract

Quantum engineering of topological superconductors and of the ensuing Majorana zero modes might hold the key for realizing a new paradigm for the implementation of topological quantum computing and topology-based devices. Magnet-superconductor hybrid (MSH) systems have proven to be experimentally versatile platforms for the creation of topological superconductivity by custom-designing the complex structure of their magnetic layer. Here, we demonstrate that higher order topological superconductivity (HOTSC) can be realized in two-dimensional MSH systems by using stacked magnetic structures. We show that the sensitivity of the HOTSC to the particular magnetic stacking opens an unprecedented ability to tune the system between trivial and topological phases using atomic manipulation techniques. We propose that the realization of HOTSC in MSH systems, and in particular the existence of the characteristic Majorana corner modes, allows for the implementation of a measurement-based protocols for topological quantum computing.