Distinct quasiparticle interference patterns for surface impurity scattering on various Weyl semimetals

We examine the response of the Fermi arc in the context of quasiparticle interference (QPI) with regard to a localized surface impurity on various three-dimensional Weyl semimetals (WSMs). Our study also reveals the variation of the local density of states (LDOS), obtained by Fourier transforming the QPI profile, on the two-dimensional surface. We use the T-matrix formalism to numerically (analytically and numerically) capture the details of the momentum space scattering in QPI (real-space decay in LDOS), considering relevant tight-binding lattice and/or low-energy continuum models modeling a range of different WSMs. In particular, we consider multi-WSM (mWSM), hosting multiple Fermi arcs between two opposite chirality Weyl nodes (WNs), where we find a universal 1/r decay (r measuring the radial distance from the impurity core) of the impurity-induced LDOS, irrespective of the topological charge. Interestingly, the inter-Fermi arc scattering is only present for triple WSMs, where we find an additional 1/r3 decay as compared to double and single WSMs. The untilted single (double) [triple] WSM shows a straight line (leaf-like) [oval-shaped] QPI profile. The above QPI profiles are canted for hybrid WSMs where type-I and type-II Weyl nodes coexist; however, hybrid single WSM demonstrates strong nonuniformity, unlike the hybrid double and triple WSMs. We also show that the chirality and the positions of the Weyl nodes imprint marked signatures in the QPI profile. This allows us to distinguish between different WSMs, including the time-reversal-broken WSMs from the time-reversal-invariant WSM, even though both of the WSMs can host two pairs of Weyl nodes. Our study can thus shed light on experimentally obtainable complex QPI profiles and help differentiate different WSMs and their surface band structures.