Topological crystalline insulators are new states of matter in which the topological nature of electronic structures arises from crystal symmetries. Here we predict the first material realization of topological crystalline insulator in the semiconductor snTe by identifying its non-zero topological index. We predict that as a manifestation of this non-trivial topology, snTe has metallic surface states with an even number of Dirac cones on high-symmetry crystal surfaces such as {001}, {110} and {111}. These surface states form a new type of high-mobility chiral electron gas, which is robust against disorder and topologically protected by reflection symmetry of the crystal with respect to {110} mirror plane. Breaking this mirror symmetry via elastic strain engineering or applying an in-plane magnetic field can open up a continuously tunable band gap on the surface, which may lead to wide-ranging applications in thermoelectrics, infra-red detection and tunable electronics. Closely related semiconductors PbTe and Pbse also become topological crystalline insulators after band inversion by pressure, strain and alloying.

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International audienceA precision measurement by AMS of the antiproton flux and the antiproton-to-proton flux ratio inprimary cosmic rays in the absolute rigidity range from 1 to 450 GV is presented based on 3.49 × 105antiproton events and 2.42 × 109 proton events. The fluxes and flux ratios of charged elementary particlesin cosmic rays are also presented. In the absolute rigidity range ∼60 to ∼500 GV, the antiproton ¯p, protonp, and positron eþ fluxes are found to have nearly identical rigidity dependence and the electron e− fluxexhibits a different rigidity dependence. Below 60 GV, the ( ¯ p=p), ( ¯ p=eþ), and (p=eþ) flux ratios eachreaches a maximum. From ∼60 to ∼500 GV, the ( ¯ p=p), ( ¯ p=eþ), and (p=eþ) flux ratios show no rigiditydependence. These are new observations of the properties of elementary particles in the cosmos

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A precision measurement by AMS of the positron fraction in primary cosmic rays in the energy range from 0.5 to 500 GeV based on 10.9 million positron and electron events is presented. This measurement extends the energy range of our previous observation and increases its precision. The new results show, for the first time, that above ∼200 GeV the positron fraction no longer exhibits an increase with energy. 3Over the last two decades, there has been a strong interest in the cosmic ray positron fraction in both particle physics and astrophysics [1]. The positron fraction is defined as the ratio of the positron flux to the combined flux of positrons and electrons. The first results from the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) on the positron fraction were reported in [2]. They generated widespread interest [3]. In this Letter we report new results based on all the data collected during 30 months of AMS operations on the International Space Station (ISS), from 19 May 2011 to 26 November 2013. Due to the excellent and steady performance of the detector, and an increase of the data sample by a factor of 1.7, the measurement of the positron fraction is extended up to 500 GeV with improved precision.AMS detector.-The layout of the AMS-02 detector [4] is shown in Fig. 1. It consists of 9 planes of precision silicon tracker with two outer planes, 1 and 9, and the inner tracker, planes 2-8 [5]; a transition radiation detector, TRD [6]; four planes of time of flight counters, TOF [7]; a permanent magnet [8]; an array of anti-coincidence counters, ACC [9], inside the magnet bore; a ring imagingČerenkov detector, RICH [10]; and an electromagnetic calorimeter, ECAL [11]. The figure also shows a high energy positron of 369 GeV recorded by AMS. AMS operates without interruption on the ISS and is monitored continuously from the ground.The timing, location and attitude of AMS are determined by a combination of GPS units affixed to AMS and to the ISS. The AMS coordinate system is concentric with the center of the magnet. The x axis is parallel to the main component of the magnetic field and the z axis points vertically. The (y-z ) plane is the bending plane. The maximum detectable rigidity over tracker planes 1-9, a lever arm of 3 m, is ∼2 TV. Detector performance, described in detail in [2,4], is steady over time.Three main detectors provide clean and redundant identification of positrons and electrons with independent suppression of the proton background. These are the TRD (above the magnet), the ECAL (below the magnet) and the tracker. The TRD and the ECAL are separated by the magnet and the tracker. This ensures that most of the secondary particles produced in the TRD and in the upper TOF planes are swept away and do not enter into the ECAL. Events with large angle scattering are also rejected by a quality cut on the measurement of the trajectory using the tracker. The matching of the ECAL energy, E, and the momentum measured with the tracker, p, greatly improves the proton rejection.To differentiate between e ± and prot...