Topological insulators are insulating in the bulk, but process metallic
states present around its boundary owing to the topological origin of
the band structure. The metallic edge or surface states are immune to
weak disorder or impurities, and robust against the deformation of the
system geometry. This book, the first of its kind on topological
insulators, presents a unified description of topological insulators
from one to three dimensions based on the modified Dirac equation. A
series of solutions of the bound states near the boundary are derived,
and the existing conditions of these solutions are described.
Topological invariants and their applications to a variety of systems
from one-dimensional polyacetalene, to two-dimensional quantum spin Hall
effect and p-wave superconductors, and three-dimensional topological
insulators and superconductors or superfluids are introduced, helping
readers to better understand this fascinating new field.
This book is intended for researchers and graduate students working in
the field of topological insulators and related areas.
Shun-Qing Shen is a Professor at the Department of Physics, the
University of Hong Kong, China.