Superconductor proximitized one-dimensional semiconductor nanowires with strong spin-orbit interaction (SOI) are, at this time, the most promising candidates for the realization of topological quantum information processing. In current experiments the SOI originates predominantly from extrinsic fields, induced by finite size effects and applied gate voltages. The dependence of the topological transition in these devices on microscopic details makes scaling to a large number of devices difficult unless a material with dominant intrinsic bulk SOI is used. Here, we show that wires made of certain ordered alloys ${\mathrm{InAs}}_{1-x}{\mathrm{Sb}}_x$ have spin splittings up to 20 times larger than those reached in pristine InSb wires. In particular, we show this for a stable ordered CuPt structure at $x=0.5$, which has an inverted band ordering and realizes a novel type of a topological semimetal with triple degeneracy points in the bulk spectrum that produce topological surface Fermi arcs. Experimentally achievable strains can either drive this compound into a topological insulator phase or restore the normal band ordering, making the CuPt-ordered ${\mathrm{InAs}}_{0.5}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{0.5}$ a semiconductor with a large intrinsic linear in $k$ bulk spin splitting.

• Received 24 February 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.117.076403