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Bhowmik S, Ghosh A, Chandni U. Emergent phases in graphene flat bands. REPORTS ON PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. PHYSICAL SOCIETY (GREAT BRITAIN) 2024; 87:096401. [PMID: 39059412 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6633/ad67ed] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
Electronic correlations in two-dimensional materials play a crucial role in stabilising emergent phases of matter. The realisation of correlation-driven phenomena in graphene has remained a longstanding goal, primarily due to the absence of strong electron-electron interactions within its low-energy bands. In this context, magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene has recently emerged as a novel platform featuring correlated phases favoured by the low-energy flat bands of the underlying moiré superlattice. Notably, the observation of correlated insulators and superconductivity, and the interplay between these phases have garnered significant attention. A wealth of correlated phases with unprecedented tunability was discovered subsequently, including orbital ferromagnetism, Chern insulators, strange metallicity, density waves, and nematicity. However, a comprehensive understanding of these closely competing phases remains elusive. The ability to controllably twist and stack multiple graphene layers has enabled the creation of a whole new family of moiré superlattices with myriad properties. Here, we review the progress and development achieved so far, encompassing the rich phase diagrams offered by these graphene-based moiré systems. Additionally, we discuss multiple phases recently observed in non-moiré multilayer graphene systems. Finally, we outline future opportunities and challenges for the exploration of hidden phases in this new generation of moiré materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saisab Bhowmik
- Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Arindam Ghosh
- Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
- Centre for Nano Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - U Chandni
- Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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Singh K, Chew A, Herzog-Arbeitman J, Bernevig BA, Vafek O. Topological heavy fermions in magnetic field. Nat Commun 2024; 15:5257. [PMID: 38898060 PMCID: PMC11187166 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49531-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/07/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
The recently introduced topological heavy fermion model (THFM) provides a means for interpreting the low-energy electronic degrees of freedom of the magic angle twisted bilayer graphene as hybridization amidst highly dispersing topological conduction and weakly dispersing localized heavy fermions. In order to understand the Landau quantization of the ensuing electronic spectrum, a generalization of THFM to include the magnetic field B is desired, but currently missing. Here we provide a systematic derivation of the THFM in B and solve the resulting model to obtain the interacting Hofstadter spectra for single particle charged excitations. While naive minimal substitution within THFM fails to correctly account for the total number of magnetic subbands within the narrow band i.e., its total Chern number, our method-based on projecting the light and heavy fermions onto the irreducible representations of the magnetic translation group- reproduces the correct total Chern number. Analytical results presented here offer an intuitive understanding of the nature of the (strongly interacting) Hofstadter bands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keshav Singh
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, FL, 32310, USA
- Department of Physics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA
| | - Aaron Chew
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA
| | | | - B Andrei Bernevig
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Oskar Vafek
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, FL, 32310, USA.
- Department of Physics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 32306, USA.
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Le C, Zhang Q, Cui F, Wu X, Chiu CK. Double and Quadruple Flat Bands Tuned by Alternative Magnetic Fluxes in Twisted Bilayer Graphene. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2024; 132:246401. [PMID: 38949361 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.132.246401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2022] [Revised: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
Twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) can host the moiré energy flat bands with twofold degeneracy serving as a fruitful playground for strong correlations and topological phases. However, the number of degeneracy is not limited to two. Introducing a spatially alternative magnetic field, we report that the induced magnetic phase becomes an additional controllable parameter and leads to an undiscovered generation of fourfold degenerate flat bands. This emergence stems from the band inversion at the Γ point near the Fermi level with a variation of both twisted angle and magnetic phase. We present the conditions for the emergence of multifold degenerate flat bands, which are associated with the eigenvalue degeneracy of a Birman-Schwinger operator. Using holomorphic functions, which explain the origin of the double flat bands in the conventional TBG, we can generate analytical wave functions in the magnetic TBG to show absolute flatness with fourfold degeneracy. Moreover, we identify an orbital-related intervalley coherent state as the many-body ground state at charge neutrality. In contrast, the conventional TBG has only two moiré energy flat bands, and the highly degenerate flat bands with additional orbital channels in this magnetic platform might bring richer correlation physics.
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Zhumagulov Y, Kochan D, Fabian J. Emergent Correlated Phases in Rhombohedral Trilayer Graphene Induced by Proximity Spin-Orbit and Exchange Coupling. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2024; 132:186401. [PMID: 38759183 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.132.186401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024]
Abstract
The impact of proximity-induced spin-orbit and exchange coupling on the correlated phase diagram of rhombohedral trilayer graphene (RTG) is investigated theoretically. By employing ab initio-fitted effective models of RTG encapsulated by transition metal dichalcogenides (spin-orbit proximity effect) and ferromagnetic Cr_{2}Ge_{2}Te_{6} (exchange proximity effect), we incorporate the Coulomb interactions within the random-phase approximation to explore potential correlated phases at different displacement fields and doping. We find a rich spectrum of spin-valley resolved Stoner and intervalley coherence instabilities induced by the spin-orbit proximity effects, such as the emergence of a spin-valley-coherent phase due to the presence of valley-Zeeman coupling. Similarly, proximity exchange removes the phase degeneracies by biasing the spin direction, enabling a magnetocorrelation effect-strong sensitivity of the correlated phases to the relative magnetization orientations (parallel or antiparallel) of the encapsulating ferromagnetic layers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaroslav Zhumagulov
- Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Regensburg, 93040 Regensburg, Germany
| | - Denis Kochan
- Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Regensburg, 93040 Regensburg, Germany
- Institute of Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, 84511 Bratislava, Slovakia
- Center for Quantum Frontiers of Research and Technology (QFort), National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan
| | - Jaroslav Fabian
- Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Regensburg, 93040 Regensburg, Germany
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Hu H, Rai G, Crippa L, Herzog-Arbeitman J, Călugăru D, Wehling T, Sangiovanni G, Valentí R, Tsvelik AM, Bernevig BA. Symmetric Kondo Lattice States in Doped Strained Twisted Bilayer Graphene. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2023; 131:166501. [PMID: 37925696 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.131.166501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
We use the topological heavy fermion (THF) model and its Kondo lattice (KL) formulation to study the possibility of a symmetric Kondo (SK) state in twisted bilayer graphene. Via a large-N approximation, we find a SK state in the KL model at fillings ν=0,±1,±2 where a KL model can be constructed. In the SK state, all symmetries are preserved and the local moments are Kondo screened by the conduction electrons. At the mean-field level of the THF model at ν=0,±1,±2,±3 we also find a similar symmetric state that is adiabatically connected to the symmetric Kondo state. We study the stability of the symmetric state by comparing its energy with the ordered (symmetry-breaking) states found in [H. Hu et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 026502 (2023).PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.131.026502, Z.-D. Song and B. A. Bernevig, Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 047601 (2022).PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.129.047601] and find the ordered states to have lower energy at ν=0,±1,±2. However, moving away from integer fillings by doping the light bands, our mean-field calculations find the energy difference between the ordered state and the symmetric state to be reduced, which suggests the loss of ordering and a tendency toward Kondo screening. In order to include many-body effects beyond the mean-field approximation, we also performed dynamical mean-field theory calculations on the THF model in the nonordered phase. The spin susceptibility follows a Curie behavior at ν=0,±1,±2 down to ∼2 K where the onset of screening of the local moment becomes visible. This hints to very low Kondo temperatures at these fillings, in agreement with the outcome of our mean-field calculations. At noninteger filling ν=±0.5,±0.8,±1.2 dynamical mean-field theory shows deviations from a 1/T susceptibility at much higher temperatures, suggesting a more effective screening of local moments with doping. Finally, we study the effect of a C_{3z}-rotational-symmetry-breaking strain via mean-field approaches and find that a symmetric phase (that only breaks C_{3z} symmetry) can be stabilized at sufficiently large strain at ν=0,±1,±2. Our results suggest that a symmetric Kondo phase is strongly suppressed at integer fillings, but could be stabilized either at noninteger fillings or by applying strain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haoyu Hu
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
| | - Gautam Rai
- I. Institute of Theoretical Physics, University of Hamburg, Notkestrasse 9, 22607 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Lorenzo Crippa
- Institut für Theoretische Physik und Astrophysik and Würzburg-Dresden Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat, Universität Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | | | - Dumitru Călugăru
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Tim Wehling
- I. Institute of Theoretical Physics, University of Hamburg, Notkestrasse 9, 22607 Hamburg, Germany
- The Hamburg Centre for Ultrafast Imaging, 22761 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Giorgio Sangiovanni
- Institut für Theoretische Physik und Astrophysik and Würzburg-Dresden Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat, Universität Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Roser Valentí
- Institut für Theoretische Physik, Goethe Universität Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Strasse 1, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Alexei M Tsvelik
- Division of Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973-5000, USA
| | - B Andrei Bernevig
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao 48009, Spain
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Hu H, Bernevig BA, Tsvelik AM. Kondo Lattice Model of Magic-Angle Twisted-Bilayer Graphene: Hund's Rule, Local-Moment Fluctuations, and Low-Energy Effective Theory. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2023; 131:026502. [PMID: 37505959 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.131.026502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
We apply a generalized Schrieffer-Wolff transformation to the extended Anderson-like topological heavy fermion (THF) model for the magic-angle (θ=1.05°) twisted bilayer graphene (MATBLG) [Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 047601 (2022)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.129.047601], to obtain its Kondo lattice limit. In this limit localized f electrons on a triangular lattice interact with topological conduction c electrons. By solving the exact limit of the THF model, we show that the integer fillings ν=0,±1,±2 are controlled by the heavy f electrons, while ν=±3 is at the border of a phase transition between two f-electron fillings. For ν=0,±1,±2, we then calculate the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida (RKKY) interactions between the f moments in the full model and analytically prove the SU(4) Hund's rule for the ground state which maintains that two f electrons fill the same valley-spin flavor. Our (ferromagnetic interactions in the) spin model dramatically differ from the usual Heisenberg antiferromagnetic interactions expected at strong coupling. We show the ground state in some limits can be found exactly by employing a positive semidefinite "bond-operators" method. We then compute the excitation spectrum of the f moments in the ordered ground state, prove the stability of the ground state favored by RKKY interactions, and discuss the properties of the Goldstone modes, the (reason for the accidental) degeneracy of (some of) the excitation modes, and the physics of their phase stiffness. We develop a low-energy effective theory for the f moments and obtain analytic expressions for the dispersion of the collective modes. We discuss the relevance of our results to the spin-entropy experiments in TBG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haoyu Hu
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
| | - B Andrei Bernevig
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Alexei M Tsvelik
- Division of Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973-5000, USA
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Herzog-Arbeitman J, Song ZD, Elcoro L, Bernevig BA. Hofstadter Topology with Real Space Invariants and Reentrant Projective Symmetries. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2023; 130:236601. [PMID: 37354423 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.130.236601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 04/15/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/26/2023]
Abstract
Adding magnetic flux to a band structure breaks Bloch's theorem by realizing a projective representation of the translation group. The resulting Hofstadter spectrum encodes the nonperturbative response of the bands to flux. Depending on their topology, adding flux can enforce a bulk gap closing (a Hofstadter semimetal) or boundary state pumping (a Hofstadter topological insulator). In this Letter, we present a real space classification of these Hofstadter phases. We give topological indices in terms of symmetry-protected real space invariants, which reveal the bulk and boundary responses of fragile topological states to flux. In fact, we find that the flux periodicity in tight-binding models causes the symmetries which are broken by the magnetic field to reenter at strong flux where they form projective point group representations. We completely classify the reentrant projective point groups and find that the Schur multipliers which define them are Arahanov-Bohm phases calculated along the bonds of the crystal. We find that a nontrivial Schur multiplier is enough to predict and protect the Hofstadter response with only zero-flux topology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zhi-Da Song
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- International Center for Quantum Materials, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Luis Elcoro
- Department of Physics, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Apartado 644, 48080 Bilbao, Spain
| | - B Andrei Bernevig
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
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Shaffer D, Wang J, Santos LH. Unconventional self-similar Hofstadter superconductivity from repulsive interactions. Nat Commun 2022; 13:7785. [PMID: 36526619 PMCID: PMC9758186 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35316-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Fractal Hofstadter bands have become widely accessible with the advent of moiré superlattices, opening the door to studies of the effect of interactions in these systems. In this work we employ a renormalization group (RG) analysis to demonstrate that the combination of repulsive interactions with the presence of a tunable manifold of Van Hove singularities provides a new mechanism for driving unconventional superconductivity in Hofstadter bands. Specifically, the number of Van Hove singularities at the Fermi energy can be controlled by varying the flux per unit cell and the electronic filling, leading to instabilities toward nodal superconductivity and chiral topological superconductivity with Chern number [Formula: see text]. The latter is characterized by a self-similar fixed trajectory of the RG flow and an emerging self-similarity symmetry of the order parameter. Our results establish Hofstadter quantum materials such as moiré heterostructures as promising platforms for realizing novel reentrant Hofstadter superconductors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Shaffer
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Physics, Emory University, 400 Dowman Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322 USA
| | - Jian Wang
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Physics, Emory University, 400 Dowman Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322 USA
| | - Luiz H. Santos
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Physics, Emory University, 400 Dowman Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322 USA
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Liu X, Peng R, Sun Z, Liu J. Moiré Phonons in Magic-Angle Twisted Bilayer Graphene. NANO LETTERS 2022; 22:7791-7797. [PMID: 36170965 PMCID: PMC9562463 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c02010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 09/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) has attracted significant interest recently due to the discoveries of diverse correlated and topological states. In this work, we study the phonon properties in magic-angle TBG based on many-body classical potential and interatomic forces generated by a deep neural network trained with data from ab initio calculations. We have discovered a number of soft modes which can exhibit dipolar, quadrupolar, and octupolar vibrational patterns in real space, as well as some time-reversal breaking chiral phonon modes. We have further studied the phonon effects on the electronic structures by freezing certain soft phonon modes. We find that if a soft quadrupolar phonon mode is assumed to be frozen, the system would exhibit a charge order which is perfectly consistent with recent experiments. Moreover, once some low-frequency C2z-breaking modes get frozen, the Dirac points at the charge neutrality point would be gapped out, which provides an alternative perspective to the origin of correlated insulator state at charge neutrality point.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoqian Liu
- School
of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech
University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Ran Peng
- School
of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech
University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Zhaoru Sun
- School
of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech
University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Jianpeng Liu
- School
of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech
University, Shanghai 201210, China
- ShanghaiTech
Laboratory for Topological Physics, ShanghaiTech
University, Shanghai 201210, China
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Herzog-Arbeitman J, Chew A, Efetov DK, Bernevig BA. Reentrant Correlated Insulators in Twisted Bilayer Graphene at 25 T (2π Flux). PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2022; 129:076401. [PMID: 36018703 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.129.076401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Twisted bilayer graphene (TBG) is remarkable for its topological flat bands, which drive strongly interacting physics at integer fillings, and its simple theoretical description facilitated by the Bistritzer-MacDonald Hamiltonian, a continuum model coupling two Dirac fermions. Because of the large moiré unit cell, TBG offers the unprecedented opportunity to observe reentrant Hofstadter phases in laboratory-strength magnetic fields near 25 T. This Letter is devoted to magic angle TBG at 2π flux where the magnetic translation group commutes. We use a newly developed gauge-invariant formalism to determine the exact single-particle band structure and topology. We find that the characteristic TBG flat bands reemerge at 2π flux, but, due to the magnetic field breaking C_{2z}T, they split and acquire Chern number ±1. We show that reentrant correlated insulating states appear at 2π flux driven by the Coulomb interaction at integer fillings, and we predict the characteristic Landau fans from their excitation spectrum.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Aaron Chew
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Dmitri K Efetov
- ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Castelldefels, Barcelona 08860, Spain
| | - B Andrei Bernevig
- Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- Donostia International Physics Center, P. Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
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