Exploring Majorana zero modes in iron-based superconductors

Abstract

Majorana zero modes (MZMs) are Majorana-fermion-like quasiparticles existing in crystals or hybrid platforms with topologically non-trivial electronic structures. They obey non-Abelian braiding statistics and are considered promising to realize topological quantum computing. Discovery of MZM in the vortices of the iron-based superconductors (IBSs) has recently fueled the Majorana research in a way which not only removes the material barrier requiring construction of complicated hybrid artificial structures, but also enables observation of pure MZMs under higher temperatures. So far, MZMs have been observed in iron-based superconductors including FeTe0.55Se0.45, (Li0.84Fe0.16)OHFeSe, CaKFe4As4, and LiFeAs. In this topical review, we present an overview of the recent STM studies on the MZMs in IBSs. We start with the observation of MZMs in the vortices in FeTe0.55Se0.45 and discuss the pros and cons of FeTe0.55Se0.45 compared with other platforms. We then review the following up discovery of MZMs in vortices of CaKFe4As4, impurity-assisted vortices of LiFeAs, and quantum anomalous vortices in FeTe0.55Se0.45, illustrating the pathway of the developments of MZM research in IBSs. Finally, we give perspective on future experimental works in this field.