Topological magnon zero-modes in dislocations

Carlos Saji, Nicolas Vidal-Silva, Alvaro S. Nunez, Roberto E. Troncoso

Published 2024-10-05Version 1

Spin fluctuations in two-dimensional (2D) ferromagnets in the presence of crystalline lattice dislocations are investigated. We show the existence of topologically protected non-propagative modes that localize at dislocations. These in-gap states, coined as {\it magnonic zero-modes}, are characterized by the $Z_2$ topological invariant that derives from parity symmetry broken induced by sublattice magnetic anisotropy. We uncover that bulk topology existing in the perfect crystal is robust under the influence of lattice defects, which is monitored by the real-space Bott index. It is also revealed that the topology of zero-modes remains unaffected when bulk topology becomes trivial and is remarkably resilient against magnetic disorder. Our findings point to the intriguing relationship between topological lattice defects and the spectrum of topological spin excitations.