Half-Quantized Chiral Edge Current in a <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>C</mml:mi> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:

A single massive Dirac surface band is predicted to exhibit a half-quantized Hall conductance, a hallmark of the C=1/2 parity anomaly state in quantum field theory. Experimental signatures of the C=1/2 parity anomaly state have been observed in semimagnetic topological insulator (TI) bilayers, yet whether it supports a half-quantized chiral edge current remains elusive. Here, we observe a robust half-quantized Hall conductance plateau in a molecular beam epitaxy grown asymmetric magnetic TI trilayer under specific in plane magnetic field regimes, corresponding to the C=1/2 parity anomaly state. Within this state, both nonlocal and nonreciprocal transport signals are greatly enhanced, which we identify as direct evidence for a half-quantized chiral edge current localized at the boundary of the top gapped surface. Our numerical simulations demonstrate that this half-quantized chiral edge channel is the essential carrier of the observed half-quantized Hall conductance plateau. The half-quantized chiral edge channel emerges from the collective behavior of multiple metallic modes of massless Dirac electrons and is fundamentally distinct from the fully quantized chiral edge channel in the C=1 quantum anomalous Hall state. Our results provide experimental evidence for the half-quantized chiral edge transport in a C=1/2 parity anomaly state. This Letter establishes asymmetric magnetic TI trilayers as a platform for probing single Dirac fermion physics and paves the way to explore a series of exciting phenomena in the C=1/2 parity anomaly state, including the topological magnetoelectric effect and quantized magneto-optical response.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Physical Review Letters
Published
2025-12-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1103/vxcb-rwbl
Primary Topic
Topological Materials and Phenomena
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Half-Quantized Chiral Edge Current in a <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>C</mml:mi> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:

Karl J. Friston
Physical Review Letters
Topological Materials and Phenomena
article

Half-Quantized Chiral Edge Current in a <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>C</mml:mi> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:

Karl J. Friston
article en

Abstract

A single massive Dirac surface band is predicted to exhibit a half-quantized Hall conductance, a hallmark of the C=1/2 parity anomaly state in quantum field theory. Experimental signatures of the C=1/2 parity anomaly state have been observed in semimagnetic topological insulator (TI) bilayers, yet whether it supports a half-quantized chiral edge current remains elusive. Here, we observe a robust half-quantized Hall conductance plateau in a molecular beam epitaxy grown asymmetric magnetic TI trilayer under specific in plane magnetic field regimes, corresponding to the C=1/2 parity anomaly state. Within this state, both nonlocal and nonreciprocal transport signals are greatly enhanced, which we identify as direct evidence for a half-quantized chiral edge current localized at the boundary of the top gapped surface. Our numerical simulations demonstrate that this half-quantized chiral edge channel is the essential carrier of the observed half-quantized Hall conductance plateau. The half-quantized chiral edge channel emerges from the collective behavior of multiple metallic modes of massless Dirac electrons and is fundamentally distinct from the fully quantized chiral edge channel in the C=1 quantum anomalous Hall state. Our results provide experimental evidence for the half-quantized chiral edge transport in a C=1/2 parity anomaly state. This Letter establishes asymmetric magnetic TI trilayers as a platform for probing single Dirac fermion physics and paves the way to explore a series of exciting phenomena in the C=1/2 parity anomaly state, including the topological magnetoelectric effect and quantized magneto-optical response.

Physical Review LettersVol. 136(1)
Pennsylvania State University (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 68%
Topological Materials and Phenomena
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.