Reentrant Metallic Behavior in the Weyl Semimetal NbP

Abstract

We report the occurrence of reentrant metallic behavior in the Weyl semimetal NbP. When the applied magnetic field $H$ is above a critical value $H_c$, a reentrance appears as a peak in the temperature dependent resistivity ${\rho }_{xx}(T)$ at $T$ = $T_p$, similar to that observed in graphite where it was attributed to local superconductivity. The $T_p(H)$ relationship follows a power-law dependence $T_p\sim (H-H_c{)}^{1/v}$ where $v$ can be derived from the temperature dependence of the zero-field resistivity ${\rho }_0(T)\sim T^v$. From concurrent measurements of the transverse ${\rho }_{xx}(T)$ and Hall ${\rho }_{xy}(T)$ magnetoresistivities, we reveal a clear correlation between the rapidly increasing ${\rho }_{xy}(T)$ and the occurrence of a peak in the ${\rho }_{xx}(T)$ curve. Quantitative analysis indicates that the reentrant metallic behavior arises from the competition of the magneto conductivity ${\sigma }_{xx}(T)$ with an additional component $\Delta {\sigma }_{xx}(T)={\kappa }_H{\sigma }_{xx}(T)$ where ${\kappa }_H=[{\rho }_{xy}(T)/{\rho }_{xx}(T){]}^2$ is the Hall factor. We find that the Hall factor (${\kappa }_H\approx 0.4$) at peak temperature $T_p$ is nearly field-independent, leading to the observed $T_p(H)$ relationship. Furthermore, the reentrant metallic behavior in ${\rho }_{xx}(T)$ also is reflected in the behavior of ${\rho }_{xx}(H)$ that ranges from non-saturating at $T>70$ K to saturation at liquid helium temperatures. The latter can be explained with the magnetic field dependence of the Hall factor ${\kappa }_H(H)$. Our studies demonstrate that a semiclassical theory can account for the 'anomalies' in the magnetotransport phenomena of NbP without invoking an exotic mechanism.

arXiv commentTo appear in Phys. Rev. B

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• Orbital-flop Induced Magnetoresistance Anisotropy in Rare Earth Monopnictide CeSb
• Effect of uniaxial stress on the electronic band structure of NbP
• The inadequacy of the $\rho$-T curve for phase transitions in the presence of magnetic fields