Metallic surface states in a correlated d-electron topological Kondo insulator candidate FeSb2

Abstract

The resistance of a conventional insulator diverges as temperature approaches zero. The peculiar low-temperature resistivity saturation in the 4f Kondo insulator (KI) SmB6has spurred proposals of a correlation-driven topological Kondo insulator (TKI) with exotic ground states. However, the scarcity of model TKI material families leaves difficulties in disentangling key ingredients from irrelevant details. Here we use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to study FeSb2, a correlated d-electron KI candidate that also exhibits a low-temperature resistivity saturation. On the (010) surface, we find a rich assemblage of metallic states with two-dimensional dispersion. Measurements of the bulk band structure reveal band renormalization, a large temperature-dependent band shift, and flat spectral features along certain high-symmetry directions, providing spectroscopic evidence for strong correlations. Our observations suggest that exotic insulating states resembling those in SmB6and YbB12may also exist in systems with d instead of f electrons.