Emerging weak antilocalization effect in Ta_0.7Nb_0.3Sb₂ semimetal single crystals

Abstract

Weak antilocalization (WAL) effect is commonly observed in low-dimensional systems, three-dimensional (3D) topological insulators and semimetals. Here, we report the growth of high-quality Ta_0.7Nb_0.3Sb₂ single crystals via the chemical vapor transport (CVT). Clear sign of the WAL effect is observed below 50 K, probably due to the strong spin−orbital coupling in 3D bulk. In addition, it is worth noting that a relatively large MR of 120% appears under 1 T magnetic field at T = 2 K. Hall measurements and two-band model fitting results reveal high carrier mobility (>1000 cm²·V⁻¹·s⁻¹ in 2–300 K region), and off-compensation electron/hole ratio of ~8:1. Due to the angular dependence of the WAL effect and the fermiology of the Ta_0.7Nb_0.3Sb₂ crystals, interesting magnetic-field-induced changes of the symmetry of the anisotropic magnetoresistance (MR) from two-fold (≤ 0.6 T) to four-fold (0.8–1.5 T) and finally to two-fold (≥ 2 T) are observed. This phenomenon is attributed to the mechanism shift from the low-field WAL dominated MR to WAL and fermiology co-dominated MR and finally to high-field fermiology dominated MR. All these signs indicate that Ta_0.7Nb_0.3Sb₂ may be a topological semimetal candidate, and these magnetotransport properties may attract more theoretical and experimental exploration of the (Ta,Nb)Sb₂ family.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

topological semimetal / magnetoresistance / weak antilocalization effect / spin−orbital coupling

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11974155 and 12104128), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. BK20210360), the Postdoctoral Research Program of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. 2021K581C), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. B210201026). W. Z. and X. W. acknowledge the support from ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronic Technologies (No. CE170100039).

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