Time-Crystalline Topological Superconductors

Aaron Chew, David F. Mross, Jason Alicea

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Time crystals form when arbitrary physical states of a periodically driven system spontaneously break discrete time-translation symmetry. We introduce one-dimensional time-crystalline topological superconductors, for which time-translation symmetry breaking and topological physics intertwine-yielding anomalous Floquet Majorana modes that are not possible in free-fermion systems. Such a phase exhibits a bulk magnetization that returns to its original form after two drive periods, together with Majorana end modes that recover their initial form only after four drive periods. We propose experimental implementations and detection schemes for this new state.

Original languageEnglish
Article number096802
Number of pages6
JournalPhysical review letters
Volume124
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - 6 Mar 2020

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Physics and Astronomy

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