Magnetotransport and activation energy of the surface states in Cd3As2 thin films

Recent experiments performed the magnetotransport measurements in (001)-oriented Cd$_3$As$_2$ thin films and attributed the magnetotransport properties to the surface states. In this paper, by using an effective model to describe the surface states, we analyze the Landau bands and then calculate the magnetoconductivities and magnetoresistivities. From these results, the features of two-dimensional quantum Hall effect of the surface states can be captured. More importantly, we reveal that the activation energy is determined by the Hall plateau width, which can explain the experimental observations that the activation energies at odd plateaus are larger than those at even plateaus. We also analyze the roles played by the structural inversion symmetry breaking and impurity scatterings in the magnetotransport, and suggest that their combined effects would lead to the absence of some Hall plateaus.