Symmetry-broken three-dimensional (3D) topological Dirac semimetal systems with strong spin-orbit coupling can host many exotic Hall-like phenomena and Weyl fermion quantum transport. Here, using high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we performed systematic electronic structure studies on Cd 3 As 2 , which has been predicted to be the parent material, from which many unusual topological phases can be derived. We observe a highly linear bulk band crossing to form a 3D dispersive Dirac cone projected at the Brillouin zone centre by studying the (001)-cleaved surface. Remarkably, an unusually high in-plane Fermi velocity up to 1.5 Â 10 6 ms À 1 is observed in our samples, where the mobility is known up to 40,000 cm 2 V À 1 s À 1 , suggesting that Cd 3 As 2 can be a promising candidate as an anisotropic-hypercone (three-dimensional) high spin-orbit analogue of 3D graphene. Our discovery of the Dirac-like bulk topological semimetal phase in Cd 3 As 2 opens the door for exploring higher dimensional spin-orbit Dirac physics in a real material.

A topological insulator protected by time-reversal symmetry is realized via spinorbit interaction driven band inversion. The topological phase in the Bi 1−x Sb x system is due to an odd number of band inversions. A related spin-orbit system, the Pb 1−x Sn x Te, has long been known to contain an even number of inversions based on band theory. Here we experimentally investigate the possibility of a mirror symmetry protected topological crystalline insulator phase in the Pb 1−x Sn x Te class of materials which has been theoretically predicted to exist in its end compound SnTe. Our experimental results show that at a finite-Pb composition above the topological inversion phase transition, the surface exhibits even number of spin-polarized Dirac cone states revealing mirror-protected topological order distinct from that observed in Bi 1−x Sb x . Our observation of the spin-polarized Dirac surface states in the inverted Pb 1−x Sn x Te and their absence in the non-inverted compounds related via a topological phase transition provide the experimental groundwork for opening the research on novel topological order in quantum devices.

The topology of the electronic structure of a crystal is manifested in its surface states. Recently, a distinct topological state has been proposed in metals or semimetals whose spin-orbit band structure features three-dimensional Dirac quasiparticles. We used angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to experimentally observe a pair of spin-polarized Fermi arc surface states on the surface of the Dirac semimetal Na3Bi at its native chemical potential. Our systematic results collectively identify a topological phase in a gapless material. The observed Fermi arc surface states open research frontiers in fundamental physics and possibly in spintronics.

Topological semimetals can support one-dimensional Fermi lines or zero-dimensional Weyl points in momentum space, where the valence and conduction bands touch. While the degeneracy points in Weyl semimetals are robust against any perturbation that preserves translational symmetry, nodal lines require protection by additional crystalline symmetries such as mirror reflection. Here we report, based on a systematic theoretical study and a detailed experimental characterization, the existence of topological nodal-line states in the non-centrosymmetric compound PbTaSe2 with strong spin-orbit coupling. Remarkably, the spin-orbit nodal lines in PbTaSe2 are not only protected by the reflection symmetry but also characterized by an integer topological invariant. Our detailed angle-resolved photoemission measurements, first-principles simulations and theoretical topological analysis illustrate the physical mechanism underlying the formation of the topological nodal-line states and associated surface states for the first time, thus paving the way towards exploring the exotic properties of the topological nodal-line fermions in condensed matter systems.