Using gapped topological surface states of Bi2Se3 films in a field effect transistor

Three dimensional topological insulators are insulators with topologically protected surface states that can have a high band velocity and high mobility at room temperature. This suggests electronic applications that exploit these surface states, but the lack of a band gap poses a fundamental difficulty. We report a first principles study based on density functional theory for thin Bi2Se3 films in the context of a field effect transistor. It is known that a gap is induced in thin layers due to hybridization between the top and bottom surfaces, but it is not known whether it is possible to use the topological states in this type of configuration. In particular, it is unclear whether the benefits of topological protection can be retained to a sufficient degree. We show that there is a thickness regime in which the small gap induced by hybridization between the two surfaces is sufficient to obtain transistor operation at room temperature, and furthermore, that the band velocity and spin texture that are important for the mobility are preserved for Fermi levels of relevance to device application.