A topological superconductor tuned by electronic correlations
A topological superconductor, characterized by either a chiral order parameter or a topological surface state in proximity to bulk superconductivity, is foundational to topological quantum computing. A key open challenge is whether electron-electron interactions can tune such topological superconducting phases. Here, we provide experimental signatures of a unique topological superconducting phase in competition with electronic correlations in 10-unit-cell thick FeTe<sub>x</sub>Se<sub>1-x</sub> films grown on SrTiO<sub>3</sub> substrates. When the Te content x exceeds 0.7, we observe a topological transition marked by the emergence of a superconducting surface state. Near the FeTe limit, the system undergoes another transition where the surface state disappears, and superconductivity is suppressed. Theory suggests that electron-electron interactions in the odd-parity xy<sup>-</sup> band drives this second topological transition. The flattening and eventual decoherence of d<sub>xy</sub>-derived bands track the superconducting dome, linking correlation effects directly to superconducting coherent transport. Our work establishes many-body electronic correlations as a sensitive knob for tuning topology and superconductivity, offering a pathway to engineer new topological phases in correlated materials.
Authors
- Gangbin Yan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4711-9063)
- Patrick A. Singleton (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9319-2333)
- Gillian Nolan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2356-9075)
- Nathan P. Guisinger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7437-2331)
- Xianxin Wu
- Yunhe Bai (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5889-6415)
- Subhasish Mandal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9662-4165)
- Pinshane Y. Huang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1095-1833)
- Shuolong Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8200-9898)
- Gabriele Berruto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5217-8489)
- Chenhui Yan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5440-9536)
- C. -X. Liu
- Chong Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2322-8721)
- Haoran Lin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-7611-844X)
- Khanh Duy Nguyen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7360-4564)
- Suin Choi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9646-6873)
- Qiang Gao
- Christopher L. Jacobs
Institutions
- West Virginia University (US)
- Argonne National Laboratory (US)
- Pennsylvania State University (US)
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- University of Chicago (US)
- Institute of Theoretical Physics (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-12-26
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67957-1
- Primary Topic
- Topological Materials and Phenomena
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00