Spin- and angle-resolved photoemission on topological materials

A historical review of spin- and angle-resolved photoemission on topological materials is presented, aimed at readers who are new to the field or who wish to obtain an overview of the activities in the field. The main focus lies on topological insulators, but also Weyl and other semimetals will be discussed. Further it will be explained why the measured spin polarisation from a spin polarised state should always add up to 100% and how spin interference effects influence the measured spin texture.Comment: Invited review article for special issue "ARPES Studies of Topological Materials" in Electronic Structur

Spin polarization in photoemission from the cuprate superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta

Photoelectrons produced from the excitation of spin-degenerate states in solids can have a sizable spin polarization, which is related to the phase of interfering channels in the photoemission matrix elements. Such spin polarization can be measured by spin-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to gain information about the transitions and the Wigner time delay of the process. Incorporating strongly correlated electron systems into this paradigm could yield a novel means of extracting phase information crucial to understanding the mechanism of their emergent behavior. In this work, we present, as a case study, experimental measurements of the cuprate superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta by spin-resolved photoemission while maintaining full angular and energy resolution. A spin polarization of at least 10% is observed, which is related to the phase of the photoelectron wave function

Concept of a multichannel spin-resolving electron analyzer based on Mott scattering

The concept of a multichannel electron spin detector based on optical imaging principles and Mott scattering (iMott) is presented. A multichannel electron image produced by a standard angle-resolving (photo) electron analyzer or microscope is re-imaged by an electrostatic lens at an accelerating voltage of 40 kV onto the Au target. Quasi-elastic electrons bearing spin asymmetry of the Mott scattering are imaged by magnetic lenses onto position-sensitive electron CCDs whose differential signals yield the multichannel spin asymmetry image. Fundamental advantages of this concept include acceptance of inherently divergent electron sources from the electron analyzer or microscope focal plane as well as small aberrations achieved by virtue of high accelerating voltages, as demonstrated by extensive ray-tracing analysis. The efficiency gain compared with the single-channel Mott detector can be a factor of more than 10 4 which opens new prospects of spin-resolved spectroscopies in application not only to standard bulk and surface systems (Rashba effect, topological insulators, etc.) but also to buried heterostructures. The simultaneous spin detection combined with fast CCD readout enables efficient use of the iMott detectors at X-ray free-electron laser facilities

Activity report 2014

Centro de Física de Materiales (CFM) is a research center focused in Materials Science. Born in 1999 as a joint initiative between Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) and Universidad del Pais Vasco – Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea (UPV-EHU), the long term goal of CFM is to push forward the frontiers of knowledge in our areas of expertise, by putting together stable teams with a record of excellence in scientific research. CFM is distinguished as a “Basque Excellence Research Center” by the Basque Government (BERC Program).N

Determination of the time scale of photoemission from the measurement of spin polarization

The Eisenbud-Wigner-Smith (EWS) time delay of photoemission depends on the phase term of the matrix element describing the transition. Because of an interference process between partial channels, the photoelectrons acquire a spin polarization which is also related to the phase term. The analytical model for estimating the time delay by measuring the spin polarization is reviewed in this manuscript. In particular, the distinction between scattering EWS and interfering EWS time delay will be introduced, providing an insight in the chronoscopy of photoemission. The method is applied to the recent experimental data for Cu(111) presented in M. Fanciulli et al., PRL 118, 067402 (2017), allowing to give better upper and lower bounds and estimates for the EWS time delays.Comment: 30 pages, 5 figure