  Transition metal dichalcogenides with nontrivial band structures exhibit
various fascinating physical properties and have sparked intensively research
interest. Here, we performed systematic magnetotransport measurements on
mechanical exfoliation prepared ZrTe2 nanoplates. We revealed that the negative
longitudinal magnetoresistivity observed at high field region in the presence
of parallel electric and magnetic fields could stem from the conductivity
fluctuations due to the excess Zr in the nanoplates. In addition, the
parametric plot, the planar Hall resistivity as function of the in-plane
anisotropic magnetoresistivity, has an ellipse-shaped pattern with shifted
orbital center, which further strengthen the evidence for the conductivity
fluctuations. Our work provides some useful insights into transport phenomena
in topological materials.
