1D chiral edge modes in a van der Waals heterostructure

We have fabricated a novel heterostructure combining a ferromagnetic layer of CrCl3 with a superconducting substrate of NbSe2. This system is particularly promising for investigation of the proximity-induced superconductivity with potential application in future quantum technology. Our initial experiments using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy have revealed the presence of chiral 1D edge modes along the boundary of the CrCl3 island, while the bulk of the material exhibits a gapped superconducting state induced by proximity to NbSe2. Initial theoretical calculation suggests that such 1D chiral edge mode can only survive in presence of the ferromagnetic ground state of CrCl3 with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. We have previously demonstrated that CrCl3 on Graphene is a 2DXY ferromagnet which challenges our initial experimental findings. It's important to consider that the proximity effect between CrCl3 and graphene might differ significantly when NbSe2 is used instead, due to its stronger spin-orbit coupling. Therefore we would like to carry out XMCD measurement to explore how the proximity effect between CrCl3 and NbSe2 affects the magnetic anisotropy axis and transition temperature of CrCl3.