Ferroelectric Topological Matter for Weyl Fermions

Topological matter has attracted tremendous interest in fundamental physics and quantum device applications. This is due to the emergence of novel particles in these materials, such as Dirac, Weyl and Majorana fermions that display a unique relativistic character. As a result, these particles can be used as information carrier for next generation quantum computers and data storage and management systems. An important requirement for such applications is the ability to control the current flow of such particles and in order to switch this current ON or OFF, similar as in traditional field effect transistors that are the basis of current silicon computer chips today. The international project FerroTop aims to develop this key functionalities by uniting in one and the same material ferroelectricity and topological materials, and in this way, create a new class of materials, named, ferroelectric topological insulators (FETICS). The international research team, lead by the Johannes Kepler University of Linz and the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, combines leading expertise and experimental facilities in this field to develop these novel kinds of materials and establish methods for manipulation of Weyl fermions in them. Based on this concept, the project will open the door for realization of low-power consumption nanoelectronic devices, based on dissipationless chiral edge currents in ultra thin film field effect devices. These will allow to control and switch ballistic spin currents at high-speeds using electric and magnetic fields. Accordingly, the outcomes will have a profound impact on future technologies for electronics, spintronics, terraherz generation and quantum computing.