Ultrahigh conductivity in Weyl semimetal NbAs nanobelts

Abstract

In two-dimensional (2D) systems, high mobility is typically achieved in low-carrier-density semiconductors and semimetals. Here, we discover that the nanobelts of Weyl semimetal NbAs maintain a high mobility even in the presence of a high sheet carrier density. We develop a growth scheme to synthesize single crystalline NbAs nanobelts with tunable Fermi levels. Owing to a large surface-to-bulk ratio, we argue that a 2D surface state gives rise to the high sheet carrier density, even though the bulk Fermi level is located near the Weyl nodes. A surface sheet conductance up to 5–100 S per □ is realized, exceeding that of conventional 2D electron gases, quasi-2D metal films, and topological insulator surface states. Corroborated by theory, we attribute the origin of the ultrahigh conductance to the disorder-tolerant Fermi arcs. The evidenced low-dissipation property of Fermi arcs has implications for both fundamental study and potential electronic applications.