Spin-Polarized Tunneling and Topological Diode Effect of Dirac Electrons in SmB6

by Prof. Lin Jiao (焦琳） (Zhejiang University)

Wednesday 22 Oct 2025, 10:00 → 11:00 Asia/Shanghai

Tsung-Dao Lee Institute/N4F-N400 - meeting room (Tsung-Dao Lee Institute)

Host: Prof. Baiqing Lv

Venue: TDLI Meeting Room N400

Tencent meeting link:  https://meeting.tencent.com/dm/6BlMfHeRbNDy  Meeting ID: 338662140, no password

 

Abstract:

In the relativistic limit, electrons may exhibit exotic quantum tunneling behaviors that go beyond the description of the Schrödinger equation. The interplay between strong correlation and band topology can further give rise to novel topological edge states. Using nano-fabrication techniques, we have prepared nanowire probes based on the topological Kondo insulator SmB6, and employed the Dirac electronic states for scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements. With this probe, we achieved atomically resolved, spin-resolved measurements under electric-field polarization and discovered that Dirac electrons retain their spin–momentum locking relationship during the tunneling process. Furthermore, we recently observed that SmB6 exhibits pronounced rectification and photovoltaic effects under radio-frequency (RF) modulation. This phenomenon can be understood as a topological diode effect arising from the spatially nonuniform distribution of Dirac electrons on the material surface. This talk will provide a detailed discussion on how the heavy Dirac electronic states in SmB6 can be exploited to explore novel phenomena in correlated topological materials.

 

References：

[1] Lin Jiao, et al., Nat. Commun. 7, 13762 (2016).

[2] Lin Jiao, et al., Sci. Adv., 4, eaau4886 (2018).

[3] Anuva Aishwarya, et al., Science 377, 1218 (2022).

[4] Jiawen Zhang, et al., PNAS 122, e2417709122 (2025) 

 

Biography:

Lin Jiao is a Zhejiang University “100-Talents Program” Research Fellow and Ph.D. supervisor. He received his B.S. (2009) and Ph.D. (2014) degrees from Zhejiang University. Subsequently, he conducted postdoctoral research at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids in Germany (as a Humboldt Fellow) and at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in the United States. From 2020 to 2022, he was employed as a Research Faculty (I) at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (NHMFL) in the U.S.

In September 2022, he joined the Center for Correlated Matter, School of Physics, Zhejiang University. His research interests focus on quantum phase transitions, unconventional superconductivity, and novel topological quantum states in strongly correlated systems such as heavy fermion materials, unconventional superconductors, and correlated topological materials. Dr. Jiao’s research combines macroscopic thermodynamic and transport measurements under extreme conditions with microscopic spectroscopic techniques based on ultra-low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). He has published more than 60 research papers, including over 10 as first author or co-corresponding author in leading journals such as Nature, Science, Science Advances, Nature Communications, and PNAS.