Nonequilibrium topological spin textures in momentum space.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 35302888.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1073/pnas.2116976119 and PMC identifier 8944773.
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Abstract
SignificanceOptically excited systems can host unprecedented phenomena and reveal key information. The spin-channel physics in the photoexcited dynamics of quantum matter remains largely unexplored. This study finds the topological surface state under contemporary time-resolved pump-probe spectroscopy an exceptionally capable platform in this regard. Spin signals exhibit interesting tornado-like spiral patterns, and the unusual topological optical activity can be indicative of spintronic applications. This exemplifies a purely nonequilibrium topological winding phenomenon, where all the hidden helicity factors in the light-matter-coupled system are robustly encoded. These results open a direction of nonequilibrium topological spin states in quantum materials.