Singular robust room-temperature spin response from topological Dirac fermions

The surface electronic states associated with topological insulators have attracted considerable attention due to their robust nature. Using low-field susceptibility measurements, a paramagnetic singularity that is common to the (Bi,Sn) 2 (Se,Te) 3 family of topological insulators is observed, and explained in terms of the topological surface states. Topological insulators are a class of solids in which the non-trivial inverted bulk band structure gives rise to metallic surface states 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 that are robust against impurity scattering 2 , 3 , 7 , 8 , 9 . In three-dimensional (3D) topological insulators, however, the surface Dirac fermions intermix with the conducting bulk, thereby complicating access to the low-energy (Dirac point) charge transport or magnetic response. Here we use differential magnetometry to probe spin rotation in the 3D topological material family (Bi 2 Se 3 , Bi 2 Te 3 and Sb 2 Te 3 ). We report a paramagnetic singularity in the magnetic susceptibility at low magnetic fields that persists up to room temperature, and which we demonstrate to arise from the surfaces of the samples. The singularity is universal to the entire family, largely independent of the bulk carrier density, and consistent with the existence of electronic states near the spin-degenerate Dirac point of the 2D helical metal. The exceptional thermal stability of the signal points to an intrinsic surface cooling process, probably of thermoelectric origin 10 , 11 , and establishes a sustainable platform for the singular field-tunable Dirac spin response.