title: Stabilizing topological phases in graphene via random adsorption.
abstract: We study the possibility of realizing topological phases in graphene with randomly distributed adsorbates. When graphene is subjected to periodically distributed adatoms, the enhanced spin-orbit couplings can result in various topological phases. However, at certain adatom coverages, the intervalley scattering renders the system a trivial insulator. By employing a finite-size scaling approach and Landauer-Büttiker formula, we show that the randomization of adatom distribution greatly weakens the intervalley scattering, but plays a negligible role in spin-orbit couplings. Consequently, such a randomization turns graphene from a trivial insulator into a topological state.
authors.affiliation: International Center for Quantum Materials, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Zhenhua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Qiao
authors.forename: Haiwen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Junren
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Niu