Condensed Matter Seminar: Alex Kamenev, University of Minnesota - “Topological Anderson Insulators”

Topological Anderson Insulators

I will discuss the role of disorder and localization in topological insulators. These systems may be described in terms of two-parameter scaling theory, similar to the one conjectured long ago for the Integer Quantum Hall effect. Certain critical values of the average topological number define quantum phase transition boundaries between distinct topological sectors. At such phase transitions topological Anderson insulators become strange metals, characterized by an ultra-slow Sinai diffusion. Possible experimental consequences of these results will be presented.