Nodal points, lines, and surfaces, and topological surface states in superconductor NiBi3

Abstract

Despite the numerous reports on the time-honored superconductor NiBi3, theoretical investigations remain limited, particularly regarding the impact of spin-orbit coupling (SOC). Based on first-principles calculations, the electronic topology of NiBi3 is mainly studied herein. Nodal loops which intersect to form a nodal chain structure are enclosed by two valence bands, and they are fully gapped by SOC. The full gap contains topological surface states defined by a Z2 topological invariant, while for the top valence band and bottom conduction band, a three-dimensional massless Dirac point at Γ is produced by the two bands with SOC. In addition, nodal surfaces which prevalently appear in the band structure without SOC are present on the entire Brillouin zone surface, and SOC only partially gaps them, thus leading to nodal lines unaffected by SOC. Type-I and type-II fermions, which are distinguished by the tilt of cones, are shown to coexist in the bulk bands. Furthermore, two Rashba-split bands are found on the (100) surface, whose inner and outer Fermi circles share the same spin polarization direction. Finally, our analysis reveals that the superconductivity of NiBi3 primarily originates from the p orbitals of Bi and d orbitals of Ni coupling with the vibration modes of Bi. The rich topological features identified in this study suggest that NiBi3 holds significant potential for realizations of topological superconductivity and other exotic phenomena.

Source-reported materials — not catalogue approval

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