Dimensional Crossover and Topological Phase Transition in Dirac Semimetal NaBi Films.

Three-dimensional (3D) topological Dirac semimetal, when thinned down to 2D few layers, is expected to possess gapped Dirac nodes quantum confinement effect and concomitantly display the intriguing quantum spin Hall (QSH) insulator phase. However, the 3D-to-2D crossover and the associated topological phase transition, which is valuable for understanding the topological quantum phases, remain unexplored. Here, we synthesize high-quality NaBi thin films with √3 × √3 reconstruction on graphene and systematically characterize their thickness-dependent electronic and topological properties by scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy in combination with first-principles calculations. We demonstrate that Dirac gaps emerge in NaBi films, providing spectroscopic evidence of dimensional crossover from a 3D semimetal to a 2D topological insulator. Importantly, the Dirac gaps are revealed to be of sizable magnitudes on three and four monolayers (72 and 65 meV, respectively) with topologically nontrivial edge states. Moreover, the Fermi energy of a NaBi film can be tuned a certain growth process, thus offering a viable way for achieving charge neutrality in transport. The feasibility of controlling Dirac gap opening and charge neutrality enables realizing intrinsic high-temperature QSH effect in NaBi films and achieving potential applications in topological devices.