Localization of the helical edge states in quantum spin Hall insulators requires breaking time-reversal invariance. In experiments, this is naturally implemented by applying a weak magnetic field B. We propose a model based on scattering theory that describes the localization of helical edge states due to coupling to random magnetic fluxes. We find that the localization length is proportional to B^{-2} when B is small and saturates to a constant when B is sufficiently large. We estimate especially the localization length for the HgTe/CdTe quantum wells with known experimental parameters.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.246803 | DOI Listing |
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