Nature Physics 13, 683 (2017). doi:10.1038/nphys4174 Authors: Shujie Tang, Chaofan Zhang, Dillon Wong, Zahra Pedramrazi, Hsin-Zon Tsai, Chunjing Jia, Brian Moritz, Martin Claassen, Hyejin Ryu, Salman Kahn, Juan Jiang, Hao Yan, Makoto Hashimoto, Donghui Lu, Robert G. Moore, Chan-Cuk Hwang, Choongyu Hwang, Zahid Hussain, Yulin Chen, Miguel M. Ugeda, Zhi Liu, Xiaoming Xie, Thomas P. Devereaux, Michael F. Crommie, Sung-Kwan Mo & Zhi-Xun Shen A quantum spin Hall (QSH) insulator is a novel two-dimensional quantum state of matter that features quantized Hall conductance in the absence of a magnetic field, resulting from topologically protected dissipationless edge states that bridge the energy gap opened by band inversion and strong spin–orbit coupling. By investigating the electronic structure of epitaxially grown monolayer 1T’-WTe2 using angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES) and first-principles calculations, we observe clear signatures of topological band inversion and bandgap opening, which are the hallmarks of a QSH state. Scanning tunnelling microscopy measurements further confirm the correct crystal structure and the existence of a bulk bandgap, and provide evidence for a modified electronic structure near the edge that is consistent with the expectations for a QSH insulator. Our results establish monolayer 1T’-WTe2 as a new class of QSH insulator with large bandgap in a robust two-dimensional materials family of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs).

Published in: "Nature Physics".