Sublattice-spin-valley-locked Weyl semimetals in van der Waals stacked structures
Phys. Rev. B 112, 245150 – Published 19 December, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/cktt-fhx2
Abstract
We propose a universal tight-binding model for realizing three-dimensional (3D) Weyl semimetals (WSMs) in van der Waals (vdW) stacked structures composed of honeycomb lattices. A large intralayer staggered potential (U), combined with a significant difference in the interlayer vdW interactions between the two honeycomb sublattices, can effectively facilitate the emergence of the WSMs. The relative strengths of the interlayer vdW hoppings between the two sublattices with orbitals determine the types of the WSMs formed. In contrast to conventional WSMs, the realized WSMs can exhibit a rare sublattice-spin-valley (SSV) locking, with spin and valley polarization. Rich topological phase transitions, spanning five distinct phases, arise from the interplay between spin-orbit coupling (), U, and . First-principles calculations discover that 3D halogenated arsenene vdW materials are ideal for observing the exotic SSV-locked Fermi arcs, which feature a record-long length. Our research provides a vdW-stacked strategy for engineering unique WSMs, enabling high-performance spintronic and valleytronic applications through spatial control.