Additional evidence for the surface origin of the peculiar angular-dependent magnetoresistance oscillations discovered in a topological insulator Bi1-xSbx

Abstract

We present detailed data on the unusual angular-dependent magnetoresistance oscillation phenomenon recentiy discovered in a topological insulator Bi 0.91Sb0.09. Direct comparison of the data taken before and after etching the sample surface gives compelling evidence that this phenomenon is essentially originating from a surface state. The symmetry of the oscillations suggests that it probably comes from the (111) plane, and obviously a new mechanism, such as a coupling between the surface and the bulk states, is responsible for this intriguing phenomenon in topological insulators.