  Spin orbit assisted Mott insulators such as sodium iridate (Na$_2$IrO$_3$)
have been an important subject of study in the recent years. In these
materials, the interplay of electronic correlations, spin-orbit coupling,
crystal field effects and a honeycomb arrangement of ions bring exciting ground
states, predicted in the frame of the Kitaev model. The insulating character of
Na$_2$IrO$_3$ has hampered its integration to an electronic device, desirable
for applications, such as the manipulation of quasiparticles interesting for
topological quantum computing. Here we show through electronic transport
measurements supported by Angle Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy (ARPES)
experiments, that electronic transport in Na$_2$IrO$_3$ is ruled by variable
range hopping and it is strongly dependent on the magnetic ordering transition
known for bulk Na$_2$IrO$_3$, as well as on external electric fields.
Electronic transport measurements allow us to deduce a value for the
localization length and the density of states in our Na$_2$IrO$_3$ thin
crystals devices, offering an alternative approach to study insulating layered
materials.
