Model for charge carrier spectra in topological semimetals of the TaAs family

Abstract

We propose a four-band model describing the electron energy spectra near the Weyl points in the topological semimetals of the TaAs family (TaAs, TaP, NbAs, NbP). This model takes into account the fact that these Weyl points result from the band-contact lines which would exist in the mirror-reflection planes of these materials if the spin-orbit interaction were absent in them. Within this model, we obtain conditions for the existence of the Weyl points, determine their positions in the Brillouin zone, and derive the explicit formula for dispersion of the bands along the straight line connecting the two close Weyl points with opposite topological charges. Using NbP as an example, the values of the parameters defining the model spectrum are found. The obtained results show that for the semimetals of the TaAs family, the charge-carriers spectrum in the vicinity of the two close Weyl points can be analyzed without complex band-structure calculations.

15 pages, 9 figures, to be published in Phys. Rev. B

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