Kondo insulators are a particularly simple type of heavy electron material, where a filled band of heavy quasiparticles gives rise to a narrow band insulator. Starting with the Anderson lattice Hamiltonian, we develop a topological classification of emergent band structures for Kondo insulators and show that these materials may host three-dimensional topological insulating phases. We propose a general and practical prescription of calculating the $Z_2$ topological indices for various lattice structures. Experimental implications of the topological Kondo insulating behavior are discussed.

• Received 22 December 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.106408