Identifying the topological superconducting phase in a multiband quantum wire

Pei Wang, Jie Liu, Qing-feng Sun, and X. C. Xie
Phys. Rev. B 91, 224512 – Published 29 June 2015

Abstract

Distinguishing the zero-bias peak (ZBP) caused by Majorana fermions from that caused by other effects remains a challenge in detecting the topological superconducting phase in a quantum wire. In this paper, we show that one can distinguish Majorana fermions from the trivial zero-energy Andreev bound states caused by impurities in the material by making a Josephson junction of the quantum wire attached to a side lead and then measuring the tunneling conductance through it as the phase difference across the junction ϕ varies. We calculate the tunneling conductance in the presence of an additional zero-energy impurity level at the Josephson junction. Even if the ZBPs exist in both the topological and trivial phases, we can identify the topological superconducting phase by a conductance peak at ϕ=π and a nearby butterfly pattern.

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  • Received 27 October 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.91.224512

©2015 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Pei Wang1,2,*, Jie Liu3, Qing-feng Sun1,4, and X. C. Xie1,4

  • 1International Center for Quantum Materials, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
  • 2Institute of Applied Physics, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310023, China
  • 3Applied Physics Department, School of Science, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China
  • 4Collaborative Innovation Center of Quantum Matter, Beijing 100871, China

  • *wangpei@zjut.edu.cn

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Vol. 91, Iss. 22 — 1 June 2015

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