From Type-II Triply Degenerate Nodal Points and Three-Band Nodal Rings to Type-II Dirac Points in Centrosymmetric Zirconium Oxide

Abstract

Using first-principles calculations, we report that ZrO is a topological material with the coexistence of three pairs of type-II triply degenerate nodal points (TNPs) and three nodal rings (NRs), when spin-orbit coupling (SOC) is ignored. Noticeably, the TNPs reside around Fermi energy with large linear energy range along tilt direction (> 1 eV) and the NRs are formed by three strongly entangled bands. Under symmetry-preserving strain, each NR would evolve into four droplet-shaped NRs before fading away, producing distinct evolution compared with that in usual two-band NR. When SOC is included, TNPs would transform into type-II Dirac points while all the NRs have gaped. Remarkably, the type-II Dirac points inherit the advantages of TNPs: residing around Fermi energy and exhibiting large linear energy range. Both features facilitate the observation of interesting phenomena induced by type-II dispersion. The symmetry protections and low-energy Hamiltonian for the nontrivial band crossings are discussed.

7 pages, 5 figures, J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2017