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In this article, we report the synthesis of a single crystalline gray Arsenic (As) via the Bismuth flux method. The as-grown sample has a Rhombohedral structure as the most stable one. Its XRD (X-ray Diffractometry) pattern ensures a single phase of the grown crystal with space group R-3m. The observed sharp XRD peaks on mechanically exfoliated thin flakes ensured the high crystallinity with growth direction along the c-axis. The EDAX (Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis) endorses the stoichiometric purity of the as-grown As single crystal. To study the vibrational mode, the Raman spectra are recorded, which show peaks at 196.2 cm-1 and 255.74 cm-1, identified as Eg and A1g modes by DFT calculations. The sample is further characterized by electronic and magneto-transport measurements. The resistivity vs temperature measurement illustrates its metallic nature in the temperature range of 2K to 300K. The measured residual resistivity ratio of the sample is 180, which endorses the high quality of the as-synthesized As single crystal. The RH measurement elucidates huge observed magnetoresistance (MR), along with SdH oscillations, which indicate the presence of topological surface states. The topological nature of As is also confirmed by first principle calculations. Not only orbit projected bands show signatures of band inversion but also the Z2invariant value(1,111) calculated by Wilson loop method affirms As to be a strong topological insulator (TI)., Comment: 14 Pages Text + Figs

Recently, transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD) have attracted a lot of attention because they can host a number of novel phases, including charge density wave and topological superconductivity. This class of compounds is significant from application and fundamental standpoints. Here we report on the synthesis and characterization of Janus TMD compound TiSeS, which is a subclass of TMDs. We observe characters of filamentary superconductivity in TiSeS, which was not reported in earlier studies. Magnetization measurements (ZFCW& FCW) as well as isothermal magnetization indicates towards type-II superconductivity whereas transport measurements lacks of zero resistivity due to possible weak inter-grain connectivity. The observed behavior can be safely attributed to filamentary superconductivity in TiSeS. Further studies need to be carried out to determine the origin of this superconducting phase.

Single crystals of Mn0.03Bi1.97Se3 were synthesized by modified Bridgman technique and phase purity was confirmed via XRD analysis. EDAX analysis has verified the stoichiometric ratio of elements in the sample. Sample flakes were transferred to the SiO2/Si n-type substrate by mechanical exfoliation technique. Four probe gold contacts were etched with the help of e-beam lithography by masking and lift off process. Resistivity measurement was performed in four probe configurations in 2-300 K temperature range. We report evidence for Kon-do effect in Mn0.03Bi1.97Se3 micro-flakes with Tmin of 14.4 K.

Kagome metals gain attention as they manifest a spectrum of quantum phenomena, including superconductivity, charge order, frustrated magnetism, and intertwined correlated states of condensed matter. With regard to electronic band structure, several of the them exhibit non-trivial topological characteristics. Here, we present a thorough investigation on the growth and the physical properties of single crystals of Ni3In2S2 which is established to be a Dirac nodal line Kagome metal. Extensive characterization is attained through temperature and field-dependent resistivity, angle-dependent magnetoresistance and specific heat measurements. In most metals, the Fermi liquid behaviour is mostly restricted to a narrow range of temperature. In Ni3In2S2, this characteristic feature has been observed for an extensive temperature range of 82 K. This is attributed to the strong electron-electron correlation in the material. Specific heat measurements reveal a high Kadowaki-Woods ratio which is in good agreement with strongly correlated systems. Almost linear positive magnetoresistance follows the conventional Kohler scaling which depicts the applicability of semi-classical theories. The angle-dependent magneto-resistance been explained using the Voigt-Thomson formula. Furthermore, de-Haas van Alphen oscillations are observed in magnetization vs. magnetic field measurement which shed light on the topological features in the Shandite Ni3In2S2.

We report on the structural, electrical and magnetic measurements in as-grown polycrystalline samples of Pb10-xCux(PO4)6O. This compound has been recently reported to be a room temperature superconductor. Our as-grown specimen has excellent XRD matching with the original submission of Lee et al. This sample has 1.5% of Cu2S as an impurity phase. A resistive transition around 380 K, possibly corresponding to structural transitions of Cu2S, is observed. No evidence of superconducting to normal state transitions in I-V characteristics at room temperature is obtained. Magnetization measurements show linear diamagnetic behavior that cannot be associated to the superconducting state. Hall measurements provide evidence of hole doping through Cu substitution. In summary, we find no evidence for room temperature ambient pressure superconductivity in Cu doped lead apatite Pb9Cu(PO4)6O.

The beta Mn type Co-Zn-Mn alloys have seized significant attention due to their ability to host skyrmions at room temperature. Here we analyse the unconventional magneto-transport properties of Co8Zn8Mn4 single crystals with a Curie temperature of 275 K. A negative magnetoresistance is obtained over a wide temperature range of 50K to 300K. The deviation of the isothermal magnetoresistance (MR) curves from linearity to non-linearity as one approaches higher temperatures points towards the transition from the dominance of magnons to spin fluctuations. In the paramagnetic phase, the change in the shape of the MR curve has been explained using the Khosla and Fischer model. The relationship between the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) and longitudinal resistivity reveals the dominance of the skew-scattering mechanism, which is inexplicable based on the theories of semi-classical magneto-transport. We experimentally determine that the spin fluctuation is the source of the skew-scattering mechanism in Co8Zn8Mn4. In general skew-scattering mechanisms predominate in compounds with high conductivity, but our findings demonstrate that this is not always the case and that other aspects also require equal consideration. Our work throws new light on the predominant scattering mechanism in chiral magnets with skyrmionics phase at low conductivity.

The desire to create an energy efficient world is bound to be incomplete without the discovery of a room temperature superconductor at ambient pressure. A recent report on the room-temperature ambient-pressure superconductor has inspired scientists to study the Cu doped Lead apatite named as LK-99. Here, we have synthesized Cu doped LK-99 and Ni-doped LK-99 compounds and studied their temperature dependent transport and magnetization behavior. In spite of the presence of impurity phase Cu$_2$S, the temperature dependent resistance shows an insulating nature of the sample. The radio frequency penetration depth measurement unveils the absence of diamagnetic flux expulsion in this sample. The temperature dependent ac susceptibility measurements reveal the paramagnetic nature of the Ni doped LK-99.

Superconductors based on transition metal dichalcogenides are of substantial current relevance, towards attaining topological superconductivity. Here we report a detailed study on the synthesis and electromagnetic characterization of high-quality single crystals of TaSeS. A superconducting transition is confirmed at 4.15K with coexisting charge density wave onset at 66K. The temperature dependence of RF penetration depth indicates s-wave characteristics in the weak coupling limit. A moderate electronic anisotropy is observed in upper critical fields with a value of 1.52. DFT calculations confirm the possibility of superconducting behavior of TaSeS and also suggest that the most stable structure belongs to P63mc space group. Negative values in phonon dispersion curves verify the possibility of co-existing CDW in 2H-TaSeS. Arrhenius plots show power law dependence of activation energy with respect to magnetic field. Overall all characteristics imply TaSeS to be a classic Type-II superconductor without any evidence for topological superconductivity.

Here we report the anisotropic magnetotransport properties in the superconducting state of Sn$_4$Au single crystal. Sn$_4$Au single crystal is synthesized through an easy melt growth method. Superconducting properties are evidenced by resistivity vs. temperature and DC magnetization measurements. Isothermal magnetization measurements hint toward type-II superconductivity in Sn$_4$Au. In-plane and out-of-plane resistivity measurements show anisotropic behavior of the upper critical field at temperatures below superconducting transition (T$_c$ = 2.3 K). The observed anisotropy is more elucidated in resistivity measurements performed below Tc at different tilt angles. The anisotropy parameter is found to be 1.26. The observed results show the presence two-fold anisotropic superconducting state in Sn$_4$Au single crystal, which may be induced due to the layered structure of synthesized Sn$_4$Au single crystal., Comment: 10 Pages Text + Figs: Revised Submitted: Euro. Phys. Lett

Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) based spin pumping is a versatile tool to quantify the spin mixing conductance and spin to charge conversion (S2CC) efficiency of ferromagnet/normal metal (FM/NM) heterostructure. The spin mixing conductance of FM/NM interface can also be tuned by the crystal orientation symmetry of epitaxial FM. In this work, we study the S2CC in epitaxial Bismuth substituted Yttrium Iron Garnet (Bi0.1Y2.9Fe5O12) thin films Bi-YIG (100 nm) interfaced with heavy metal platinum (Pt (8 nm)) deposited by pulsed laser deposition process on different crystal orientation Gd3Ga5O12 (GGG) substrates i.e. [100] and [111]. The crystal structure and surface roughness characterized by X-Ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy measurements establish epitaxial Bi-YIG[100], Bi-YIG[111] orientations and atomically flat surfaces respectively. The S2CC quantification has been realized by two complimentary techniques, (i) FMR-based spin pumping and inverse spin Hall effect (ISHE) at GHz frequency and (ii) temperature dependent spin Seebeck measurements. FMR-ISHE results demonstrate that the [111] oriented Bi-YIG/Pt sample shows significantly higher values of spin mixing conductance ((2.31+-0.23)x10^18 m^-2) and spin Hall angle (0.01+-0.001) as compared to the [100] oriented Bi-YIG/Pt. A longitudinal spin Seebeck measurement reveals that the [111] oriented sample has higher spin Seebeck coefficient (106.40+-10 nV mm-1 K-1). This anisotropic nature of spin mixing conductance and spin Seebeck coefficient in [111] and [100] orientation has been discussed using the magnetic environment elongation along the surface normal or parallel to the growth direction. Our results aid in understanding the role of crystal orientation symmetry in S2CC based spintronics devices.

Fe3GeTe2 is a 2-dimensional van der Waals material exhibiting itinerant ferromagnetism upto 230 K. Here, we study aspects of scattering mechanism in Fe3Ge2Te2 single crystals via resistivity, magneto-transport and Hall effect measurements. The quadratic temperature dependence of electrical resistivity below the Curie temperature hints towards the dominance of electron-magnon scattering. A non-saturating positive magnetoresistance (MR) is observed at low temperatures when the magnetic field is applied parallel to the sample plane. The linear negative MR at high fields for T < TC corroborates to the suppression in magnon population due to the damping of spin waves. In the high temperature regime T > TC,MR can be described by the scattering from spin fluctuations using the model described by Khosla and Fischer. Isothermal Hall resistivity curves unveil the presence of anomalous Hall resistivity. Correlation between MR and side jump mechanism further reveals that the electron-magnon scattering is responsible for the side jump contribution to the anomalous Hall effect. Our results provide a clear understanding of the role of electron-magnon scattering on anomalous Hall effect that rules out its origin to be the topological band structure.

Cobalt based sulphides of compositional formula Co$ _{3} $A$ _{2} $S$ _{2} $ (A = Sn and In) are endowed with frustrated kagome lattice structure and a plethora of novel phenomena determined from the topological band structure. Here-in, we report on the detailed exploration of anisotropic magnetic properties of single crystals of ferromagnetic compound Co$ _{3} $Sn$ _{2} $S$ _{2} $ under magnetic field $H$ applied along the c-axis $(H\parallel c)$ and the ab-plane $(H\parallel ab)$. A low temperature clustered-glassy magnetic behaviour is revealed in field-cooled and zero field-cooled magnetization and memory effect measurement protocols. The sharp downturn and non-linearity observed in the inverse susceptibility above the critical temperature $T _{\text{C}} $ in the paramagnetic region corroborates to the presence of short-range ferromagnetic clusters above $ T _{\text{C}} $ in Co$ _{3} $Sn$ _{2} $S$ _{2} $. The deviation from linear Curie-Weiss behaviour in the paramagnetic state signifies the strong Griffiths singularity in the material. The slow spin dynamics behaviour and zero spontaneous magnetization above $ T _{\text{C}} $ give an evidence of Griffiths phase owing to the ferromagnetic clusters. The Arrott plots derived from magnetization reveal convex type curvature at low fields and linear positive behavior in the high field region, confirming the second order magnetic phase transition in Co$ _{3} $Sn$ _{2} $S$ _{2} $. The Takahashi spin fluctuation theory analysis provides sufficient evidence for itinerant ferromagnetism in Co$ _{3} $Sn$ _{2} $S$ _{2} $. A large magneto-crystalline anisotropy concomitant with a high anisotropy field suggests the dominance of strong spin orbit coupling phenomenon. Our experimental results emphasize an intuitive understanding of the complex nature of magnetism present in Co-based shandite systems.

Topological semimetals with superconducting properties provide an emergent platform to explore the properties of topological superconductors. We report magnetization, and magneto-transport measurements on high quality single crystals of transition metal dichalcogenide SnTaS2. It is a nodal line semimetal with superconducting transition below Tc = 2.9 K. Moderate anisotropy (3.1) is observed in upper critical fields along H||c and H||ab plane. In the normal state we observe large magneto-resistance and weak anti-localization effect that provide unambiguous confirmation of topological features in SnTaS2. Therefore, genuine topological characteristics can be studied in this material, particularly with regard to microscopic origin of order parameter symmetry.

Superconductors with non-trivial band topology are emerging as one of the best avenues to study quantum anomalies and experimental realization of Majorana Fermions. This article reports the successful crystal growth of superconducting SnAs, which can have topologically non-trivial states, as evidenced in DFT (Density Functional Theory) calculations, Z2 invariants, and topologically surface state. Here, we followed a two-step method to grow SnAs crystal. The powder XRD (X-ray Diffractometry) pattern of synthesized crystal ensures that the crystal is grown in a single phase with a NaCl type cubic structure and the EDAX (Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis) endorses the stoichiometry of the as-grown sample. The DFT calculations performed with and without the inclusion of spin-orbit coupling (SOC) show band inversion at various K symmetry points near the Fermi level. The recorded Raman spectra show two different modes, which are assigned as A1 and ETO vibrations. The ZFC (Zero-Field Cooled) & FC (Field Cooled), as well as the isothermal M-H (Magnetization vs. field) measurements, are also performed for the topological non-trivial SnAs superconductor, which eventually confirms the weak type-II superconductivity at 4K. Various other superconductivity parameters viz. kappa parameter, coherence length, and penetration depth are also calculated to probe the as-grown sample's characteristics., Comment: 25 Pages Text + Figs: Detailed DFT including First report on Z-invariants of SnAs

Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG) and bismuth (Bi) substituted YIG (Bi0.1Y2.9Fe5O12, BYG) films are grown in-situ on single crystalline Gadolinium Gallium Garnet (GGG) substrates [with (100) and (111) orientations] using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. As the orientation of the Bi-YIG film changes from (100) to (111), the lattice constant is enhanced from 12.384 {\AA} to 12.401 {\AA} due to orientation dependent distribution of Bi3+ ions at dodecahedral sites in the lattice cell. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) images show smooth film surfaces with roughness 0.308 nm in Bi-YIG (111). The change in substrate orientation leads to the modification of Gilbert damping which, in turn, gives rise to the enhancement of ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) line width. The best values of Gilbert damping are found to be (0.54)*10-4, for YIG (100) and (6.27)*10-4, for Bi-YIG (111) oriented films. Angle variation measurements of the Hr are also performed, that shows a four-fold symmetry for the resonance field in the (100) grown film. In addition, the value of effective magnetization (4{\pi}Meff) and extrinsic linewidth ({\Delta}H0) are observed to be dependent on substrate orientation. Hence PLD growth can assist single-crystalline YIG and BYG films with a perfect interface that can be used for spintronics and related device applications.

Topological materials with extremely large magnetoresistance exhibit a prognostic feature of resistivity turn-on behaviour. This occurs when the temperature dependence of resistivity changes from metallic to semiconducting characteristics on application of external magnetic field above a threshold value. Here, we study the magneto-transport properties of type-II Weyl Semimetal WP2. We find that semi-classical theories of magnetoresistance are consistent with our data without the need to invoke topological surface states. Our findings in this work provides an alternative basis to understand the temperature dependence of magnetoresistance in topological materials.

Here, we report the growth and characterization of single crystals of NdxSb2-xTe3, by solid state reaction route via self-flux method. The phase and layered growth are confirmed through x-ray diffraction and Scanning electron microscopy respectively. A slight contraction in lattice parameters is seen after Nd doping. Also a minute shift in vibrational modes of recorded Raman spectra has been observed by doping of Nd in Sb2Te3. The magneto-resistance values under magnetic field of 5Tesla for Sb2Te3 are 75 percent at 2.5K and 60 percent at 20K, but only 40 percent at 5K for Nd0.1Sb1.9Te3. DC magnetic measurements exhibit expected diamagnetic and paramagnetic behaviors for pure and Nd doped crystals respectively. A cusp-like behavior is observed in magneto conductivity of both pure and Nd doped crystals at low magnetic fields below 1 Tesla which is analyzed using Hikami Larkin Nagaoka (HLN) model. For Sb2Te3 the fitted parameters alpha values are -1.02 and -0.58 and the phase coherence lengths are 50.8(6)nm & 34.9(8)nm at temperatures 2.5K and 20K respectively. For Nd0.1Sb1.9Te3, alpha is -0.29 and coherence length is 27.2(1) nm at 5K. The {\alpha} values clearly show the presence of weak anti localization effect in both, pure and Nd doped samples. Also with Nd doping, the contribution of bulk states increases in addition to conducting surface states in overall conduction mechanism., Comment: 16 Pages Text + Figs: Accepted Letter J. Sup. Novel. Mag

Here, we report successful single crystal growth of SnSb2Te4 using the self-flux method. Unidirectional crystal growth is confirmed through X Ray Diffraction (XRD) pattern taken on mechanically cleaved crystal flake while the rietveld refined Powder XRD (PXRD) pattern confirms the phase purity of the grown crystal. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) image and Energy Dispersive X-Ray analysis (EDAX) confirm crystalline morphology and exact stoichiometry of constituent elements. Vibrational Modes observed in Raman spectra also confirm the formation of the SnSb2Te4 phase. DC resistivity measurements confirm the metallic character of the grown crystal. Magneto-transport measurements up to 5T show a nonsaturating low magneto-resistance percentage. V type cusp and Hikami Larkin Nagaoka (HLN) fitting at lower field confirms the Weak Anti-localization (WAL) effect in SnSb2Te4. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were showing topological non-trivial electronic band structure. It is the first-ever report on MR study and WAL analysis of SnSb2Te4 single crystal., Comment: 22 Pages Text + Figs: comments/suggestions welcome

Quantum materials with non-trivial band topology and bulk superconductivity are considered superior materials to realize topological superconductivity. In this regard, we report detailed Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations and Z2 invaraints for the NbC superconductor, exhibiting its band structure to be topologically non-trivial. Bulk superconductivity at 8.9K is confirmed through DC magnetization measurements under Field Cooled (FC) and Zero Field Cooled (ZFC) protocols. This superconductivity is found to be of type-II nature as revealed by isothermal M-H measurements and thus calculated the Ginzberg-Landau parameter. A large intermediate state is evident from the phase diagram, showing NbC to be a strong type-II superconductor. Comparing with earlier reports on superconducting NbC, a non-monotonic relationship of critical temperature with lattice parameters is seen. In conclusion, NbC is a type-II around 10K superconductor with topological non-trivial surface states., Comment: 20 Pages Text + Figs: First time DFT calculations of Z2 invaraints for the NbC superconductor. Letter- J. Superconductivity Novel Magnetism (2021)

The article comprises structural, microstructural, and physical properties analysis of Bi2Se3-xTex (x= 0, 1, 2 and 3) mixed topological insulator (MTI) single crystals. All the crystals were grown through a well-optimized solid-state reaction route via the self-flux method. These MTI are well characterized through XRD (X-ray Diffraction), SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy), EDAX (Energy Dispersive spectroscopy), and thereby, the physical properties are analyzed through the RT (Resistance vs temperature) down to 10K as well as the magneto-resistance (MR) measurements (at 5K) in a magnetic field of up to 10 Tesla. The MR drastically varies from x=0 to x=3 in MTI, from a huge 400 percent, it goes down to 20 percent and 5 percent and eventually back to 315 percent. This fascinated behaviour of MR is explained in this article through HLN (Hikami-Larkin-Nagaoka) equation and an additional term. This article not only proposed the mesmerizing behavior of MR in MTI but also explains the reason through competing WAL (Weak Anti-Localization) and WL (Weak Localization) conduction processes., Comment: 213 Pages Text + Figs: Accepted Solid State Communications

Here we report successful single crystal growth of new possible magnetic topological insulator (MTI) FeBi2Te4 by self-flux method via vacuum encapsulation process. The detailed Rietveld analysis of Powder XRD data shows the as grown MTI crystal to be mainly dominated by FeBi2Te4 phase along with minority phases of Bi2Te3 and FeTe. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image shows the morphology of as grown MTI single crystal to be of layered type laminar structure. Raman spectroscopy of the crystal exhibited three distinct phonon modes at 65, 110, and 132 cm-1 along with two split secondary modes at 90, and 144cm-1. The secondary split modes are result of FeTe intercalation in Bi2Te3 unit cell. Magneto-resistance measurement has been performed at different temperatures i.e. 200K, 20K and 2K in applied magnetic fields up to 12 Tesla, which showed very low MR in comparison to pure Bi2Te3 crystal. Temperature dependence of DC magnetization measurements show the FeBi2Te4 crystal to be mainly of ferromagnetic (FM) or ferri-magnetic nature above 295 K, albeit a secondary weak magnetic transition is seen at 54-46K as well. Detailed isothermal magnetization (MH) results showed that FM saturation moment at 295K is 0.00213emu/g, which is nearly invariant till 400 K. Summary, we had grown an MTI FeBi2Te4 single crystal, which may be a possible entrant for Quantum Anomalous Hall (QAH) effect at room temperature or above., Comment: 14 Pages Text + Figs: Accepted .. Letter J. Sup. & Novel Mag

The crystal structure of hexagonal-Sr0.6Ba0.4MnO3 allows various competing superexchange interactions, leading to intriguing magnetic properties. Local structural changes modify overlapping between Mn and oxygen ions with temperature. Calculations based on our model spin-Hamiltonian reveal that the dominant linear antiferromagnetic superexchange interaction between the oxygen-linked Mn4+ ions results in short range correlations (SRC), manifesting a smooth drop in magnetization below 325K. Dominance of superexchange interaction changes its allegiance towards the non-linear oxygen-linked Mn-O-Mn interactions, onsetting long-range correlations (LRC) below 225K. Below the SRC-LRC crossover temperature, electrical response arising from the interacting dipoles exhibits power-law divergent behaviour of relaxation time, upon cooling. Non-ergodic character of the dipole-cluster glass state is examined via the indispensable aging and rejuvenation effects, similar to the spin glasses. Competitive-frustration among spin-exchange and local-strain is reckoned as responsible for the electrical glass origin., Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, 32 references. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1807.01303

We report the detailed study of structural micro-structuraland high magnetic field magneto transport propertiesof Bi2Se3single crystal. Bi2Se3 single crystal is grown through conventional solid-state reaction route via the self-flux method. Rietveld analysis on Powder X-ray Diffraction showed that the studied Bi2Se3 crystal is crystallized in single-phase without any impurity. The surface morphology analyzed through Scanning Electron Microscopy study which shows that as-grown single crystal exhibit layered type structure and the quantitative weight of the atomic constituents (Bi and Se) are found to be closeto the stoichiometric amount in energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis. Low temperature (2.5K) magneto-resistance (MR) exhibited a v-type cusp around origin at lower magnetic field, which is the sign of weak anti-localization effect. Further, Bi2Se3 single crystal magneto conductivity data is fitted by well-known HLN equation in different magnetic field range of 2Tesla, 4Tesla and 6Tesla and the resultant found that the conduction mechanism of Bi2Se3 is dominated by WAL state., Comment: 4 Pages Text + Figs

We report successful growth of magnetic topological insulator (MTI) MnBi2Te4. The heating schedule basically deals with growth of the crystal from melt at 900C and very slow cooling (1C/hr) to around 600C with 24 hours hold time, followed by cooling to room temperature. Our detailed, PXRD Reitveld analysis showed that the resultant crystal is dominated mainly by MnBi2Te4 and minor phases of Bi2Te3 and MnTe. The transport measurements showed a step like behavior at around 150K followed by cusp like structure in resistivity at around 25K (TP) due reported anti-ferromagnetic ordering of Mn. Both the resistivity transitions are seen clearly in dR/dT measurements at 150K and 20K respectively. The 25K transition of the compound is also seen in magnetic susceptibility. Low temperature (5K) magnetoresistance (MR) in applied field of up to 6 Tesla exhibited negative ve MR below 3 Tesla and +ve for higher fields. Also, seen are steps in MR below one Tesla. The studied MnBi2Te4 MTI crystal could be a possible candidate for Quantum Anomalous Hall (QAH) effect., Comment: 14 Pages Text + Figs. Accepted Letter - J. Sup. & Novel Mag

We report the crystal growth as well as transport properties of Co added Bi2Se3 single crystals. The values of the lattice parameters a and b for Co added sample were observed to increase as compared to the pure Bi2Se3. The Raman spectroscopy displayed higher Raman shift of corresponding vibrational modes for Co0.1Bi2Se3, and the resistivity curves with and without applied magnetic field shows a metallic behaviour. Both the crystals were subjected to magneto-resistance (MR) measurements under applied fields of 14Tesla. The value of MR is found to decrease from about 380 (5K, 14 Tesla) for Bi2Se3 to 200 degree for Co0.1Bi2Se3. To elaborate the transport properties of pure and Co added Bi2Se3 crystals, the magneto-conductivity is fitted to the HLN (Hikami Larkin Nagaoka) equation and it is found that the charge conduction is mainly dominated by surface driven WAL (weak anti-localization) with negligible bulk WL (weak localization) contribution in both crystals alike. The MH curves of Co0.1Bi2Se3 crystal at different temperatures displayed a combination of both ferromagnetic and diamagnetic behaviour. On the other hand, the Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) revealed that pure Bi2Se3 is diamagnetic whereas, Co orders ferro-magnetically with resonating field around 3422Oe at room temperature., Comment: 21 Pages of Text plus Figures

We report on synthesis and characterization of gallide cluster based Mo8Ga41 superconductor. Transport and magnetization measurements confirm the superconducting transition temperature to be 9.8 K. The upper critical field, lower critical field, Ginzburg-Landau coherence length and penetration depth are estimated to be 11.8T, 150G, 5.2nm, 148nm respectively. The electronic band structure, density of states and phonon dispersion curve calculations are obtained by using Density Functional Theory. The core level X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) reveals the binding energy information of the constituting elements Mo and Ga in Mo8Ga41. The valence band spectra from XPS is in good agreement with calculated density of states (DOS). The zero field critical current density (Jc) at T = 2 K is ~ 3*10^5 A/cm^2 which is indicative of efficient flux pinning in the as grown compound. About two fold enhancement in critical current density with application of external pressure (1.1 GPa) is observed with marginal decrease in transition temperature. The fitting of current density to double exponential model confirms possibility of two gap superconductivity in Mo8Ga41.

We report the high field (up to 14Tesla) magneto-conductivity analysis of Bi2Se3 topological insulator grown via the self flux method. The detailed experimental investigations including crystal growth as well as the electrical, thermal and spectroscopic characterizations of the resultant Bi2Se3 single crystal are already reported by some of us. The current letter deals with high field magneto-conductivity analysis in terms of Hikami Larkin Nagaoka (HLN) model, which revealed that the electronic conduction is dominated by both surface states driven weak anti localization (WAL), as well the bulk WL (weak localization) states. Further, by applying the HLN equation we have extracted the fitting parameters i.e., phase coherence length and the pre-factor. The HLN equation exhibited values of [pre factor close to -1.0, indicating both WAL and WL contributions. On the other hand, the extracted phase coherence length is seen to decrease from 11.125 nm to 5.576 nm as the temperature is increased from 5K to 200K respectively. Summarily, the short letter discusses primarily the temperature dependent magneto-conductivity analysis of pristine Bi2Se3 single crystal by the HLN model., Comment: Letter to Editor MS: 10 pages including 3 Figs

We report the magneto-conductivity analysis at different temperatures under magnetic field of up to 5Tesla of a well characterized Bi2Te3 crystal. Details of crystal growth and various physical properties including high linear magneto resistance are already reported by some of us. To elaborate upon the transport properties of Bi2Te3 crystal, the magneto conductivity is fitted to the known HLN (Hikami Larkin Nagaoka) equation and it is found that the conduction mechanism is dominated by both surface driven WAL (weak anti localization) and the bulk WL states. The value of HLN equation coefficient signifying the type of localization (WL, WAL or both WL and WAL) falls within the range of -0.5 to -1.5. In our case, the low field (0.25Tesla) fitting of studied crystal exhibited value close to -0.86 for studied temperatures of up to 50K, indicating both WAL and WL contributions. The phase coherence length is found to decrease from 98.266 to 40.314nm with increasing temperature. Summarily, the short letter reports the fact that bulk Bi2Te3 follows the HLN equation and quantitative analysis of the same facilitates to know the quality of studied crystal in terms of WAL to WL contributions and thus the surface to bulk conduction ratio., Comment: Short Letter MS 10 pages including 3 Figs: Letter J. Sup. & Novel Mag. (2018)

The single helical Fermi surface on the surface state of three-dimensional topological insulator Bi2Se3 is constrained by the time-reversal invariant bulk topology to possess a spin-singlet superconducting pairing symmetry. In fact, the Cu-doped, and pressure-tuned superconducting Bi2Se3 show no evidence of the time reversal symmetry breaking. We report on the detection of the time reversal symmetry (TRS) breaking in the topological superconductor Sr0.1Bi2Se3 , probed by zero-field (ZF) {\mu}SR measurements. The TRS breaking provides strong evidence for the existence of spin-triplet pairing state. The temperature dependent super-fluid density deduced from transverse-field (TF) {\mu}SR measurement yields nodeless superconductivity with low superconducting carrier density and penetration depth {\lambda} = 1622(134) nm. From the microscopic theory of unconventional pairing, we find that such a fully gapped spin triplet pairing channel is promoted by the complex interplay between the structural hexagonal warping and higher order Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling terms. Based on Ginzburg-Landau analysis, we delineate the mixing of singlet to triplet pairing symmetry as the chemical potential is tuned far above from the Dirac cone. Our observation of such spontaneous TRS breaking chiral superconductivity on a helical surface state, protected by the TRS invariant bulk topology, can open new avenues for interesting research and applications.

We study magneto-transport properties in single crystals of TaSb_2, which is a recently discovered topological semimetal. In the presence of magnetic field, the electrical resistivity shows onset of insulating behaviour followed by plateau at low temperature. Such resistivity plateau is generally assigned to topological surface states. TaSb2 exhibits extremely high magneto-resistance with non-saturating field dependence. We find that aspects of extremely large magneto resistance and resistivity plateau are well accounted by classical Kohler scaling. Unambiguous evidence for anomalous Chiral transport is provided with observation of negative longitudinal magneto-resistance. Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations reveal two dominating frequencies, 201 T and 455 T. These aspects categorize TaSb2 as a Type-II Weyl semimetal. At low temperature, the field dependence of Hall resistivity shows non-linear behaviour that indicates the presence of two types of charge carriers in consonance with reported electronic band structure. Analysis of Hall resistivity imply very high electron mobilities.

The Sb2Te3 crystals are grown using the conventional self flux method via solid state reaction route, by melting constituent elements (Sb and Te) at high temperature (850 C), followed by slow cooling (2 C per hour).The weak anti localization (WAL) related low field (2 Tesla) magneto-conductance at low temperatures (2.5 K and 20 K) has been analysed and discussed using the Hikami- Larkin - Nagaoka (HLN) model. Summarily, the short letter reports an easy and versatile method for crystal growth of bulk Sb2Te3 topological insulator (TI) and its brief physical property characterization., Comment: 18 Pages Text + Figs: Accepted Mat. Res. Exp. (May 2018)

Synthesis methodology for flakes of p-terphenyl through sublimation under inert atmosphere of argon is presented. Flake morphology of p-terphenyl provides a favourable environment for efficient intercalation of potassium. Ratio of potassium and p-terphenyl is adjusted so as to obtain the desired superconducting phase i.e. potassium doped p-terphenyl (K3C18H14). A clear transition is observed at 107 K under Zero Field Cooled (ZFC) and Field Cooled (FC) mode. But overall the moment is positive possibly due to impurity phase dominating characteristics in the presence of negligible superconducting volume fraction. The M-H loop taken at 20 K shows magnetic behaviour in synthesized K- doped p-terphenyl but upon background subtraction, it does exhibit characteristics of a type-2 superconductor.

We study the magnetocapacitance (MC) effect and magnetoelectric (ME) coupling in spin-flop driven antiferromagnet Co4Ta2O9. The magnetocapacitance data at high magnetic fields are analyzed by phenomenological Ginzburg-landau theory of ferroelectromagnets and it is found that change in dielectric constant is proportional to the square of magnetization. The saturation polarization and magnetoelectric coupling are estimated to be 52microC/m2 and $\gamma$ = 1.4 x10-3 (emu/g)-2 respectively at 6 Tesla. Electric polarization is achieved below Neel temperature only when the sample is cooled in the presence of magnetic field and it is established that the ground state is non-ferroelectric implying that magnetic lattice does not lead to spontaneous symmetry breaking in Co4Ta2O9.

Incorporation of magnetism in graphene based compounds holds great promise for potential spintronic applications. By optimizing point defects and high edge density of defects, we report many-fold increase in the ferromagnetic saturation moment in lacey reduced graphene oxide nanoribbons (LRGONR) as compared to other graphene derivatives. The samples were synthesized using chemical unzipping methodology. Detailed structural and morphological characterizations are discussed that include XRD, Raman, SEM, HRTEM and XPS measurements. Brilluoin function analysis to magnetization data reflects best fit for J = 7/2 with a saturation moment of 1.1 emu/g. The microscopic origin of magnetization in LRGONR is assigned to high edge defect density which has also been correlated to microstructure.

SrxBi2Se3 is recently reported to be a superconductor derived from topological insulator Bi2Se3. It shows a maximum resistive Tc of 3.25 K at ambient pressure. We report magnetic (upto 1 GPa) and transport properties (upro 8 Gpa) under pressure for single crystalline Sr0.1Bi2Se3 superconductor. Magnetic measurements show that Tc decreases from ~2.6 K (0 GPa) to ~1.9 K (0.81 GPa). Similar behavior is observed in transport properties as well without much change in the metallic characteristics in normal state resistivity. No reentrant superconducting phase (Physical Review B 93, 144514 (2016)) is observed at high pressure. Normal state resistivity near Tc is explained by Fermi liquid model. Above 100 K, a polaronic hopping conduction mechanism with two parallel channels for current flow is indicated. Band structure calculations indicate decreasing density of states at Fermi level with pressure. In consonance with transition temperature suppression in conventional BCS low Tc superconductors, the pressure effect in SrxBi2Se3 is well accounted by pressure induced band broadening.

Synthesis and extensive structural, pyroelectric, magnetic, dielectric and magneto-electric characterizations are reported for polycrystalline Co4Nb2O9 towards unraveling the multiferroic state especially in reference to the magnetic spin flop transition. Magnetic measurements confirm the Co4Nb2O9 becomes antiferromagnetic (AFM) at around 28 K but no clear evidence for spin-flop effect was found. Associated with the magnetic phase transition, a sharp peak in pyroelectric current indicates the appearance of the strong magneto-electric coupling below Neel temperature (TN) with a large coupling constant upto 17.8 uC/m^2T. Using temperature oscillation technique, we establish Co4Nb2O9 to be a genuine multiferroic with spontaneous electric polarization in the anti-ferromagnetic state.