Topological superconductors from a materials perspective

Topological superconductors (TSCs) have garnered significant research and industry attention in the past two decades. By hosting Majorana bound states which can be used as qubits that are robust against local perturbations, TSCs offer a promising platform toward (non-universal) topological quantum computation. However, there has been a scarcity of TSC candidates, and the experimental signatures that identify a TSC are often elusive. In this perspective, after a short review of the TSC basics and theories, we provide an overview of the TSC materials candidates, including natural compounds and synthetic material systems. We further introduce various experimental techniques to probe TSC, focusing on how a system is identified as a TSC candidate, and why a conclusive answer is often challenging to draw. We conclude by calling for new experimental signatures and stronger computational support to accelerate the search for new TSC candidates.Comment: 42 pages, 6 figure

Topology stabilized fluctuations in a magnetic nodal semimetal

Abstract The interplay between magnetism and electronic band topology enriches topological phases and has promising applications. However, the role of topology in magnetic fluctuations has been elusive. Here, we report evidence for topology stabilized magnetism above the magnetic transition temperature in magnetic Weyl semimetal candidate CeAlGe. Electrical transport, thermal transport, resonant elastic X-ray scattering, and dilatometry consistently indicate the presence of locally correlated magnetism within a narrow temperature window well above the thermodynamic magnetic transition temperature. The wavevector of this short-range order is consistent with the nesting condition of topological Weyl nodes, suggesting that it arises from the interaction between magnetic fluctuations and the emergent Weyl fermions. Effective field theory shows that this topology stabilized order is wavevector dependent and can be stabilized when the interband Weyl fermion scattering is dominant. Our work highlights the role of electronic band topology in stabilizing magnetic order even in the classically disordered regime