Dresden 2014 – scientific programme

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O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik

O 44: Low-Dimensional Systems: 2D - Theory (TT jointly with O)

O 44.3: Talk

Wednesday, April 2, 2014, 10:00–10:15, BEY 81

Plasmons due to the interplay of Dirac and Schrödinger fermions — •Stefan Jürgens, Paolo Michetti, and Björn Trauzettel — Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics, University of Würzburg, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany

We study the interplay between Dirac and Schrödinger fermions in the polarization properties of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG). Specifically, we analyze the low-energy sector of narrow-gap semiconductors described by a two-band Kane model. In the context of quantum spin Hall insulators, particularly, in Hg(Cd)Te quantum wells, this model is named Bernevig-Hughes-Zhang model. Interestingly, it describes electrons with intermediate properties between Dirac and Schrödinger fermions. We calculate the dynamical dielectric function of such a model at zero temperature within random phase approximation. Surprisingly, plasmon resonances are found in the intrinsic (undoped) limit, whereas they are absent -- in that limit -- in graphene as well as ordinary 2DEGs. Additionally, we demonstrate that the optical conductivity offers a quantitative way to identify the topological phase of Hg(Cd)Te quantum wells from a bulk measurement.