Effect of lattice zero-point motion on electronic properties of the Peierls-Fröhlich state

Possible Benefits from Phonon/Spin-Wave Induced Gaps below or above EF for Superconductivity in High-TC Cuprates

A phonon of appropriate momentum kF will open a band gap at the Fermi energy EF. The gap within the electronic density-of-states (DOS), N(EF), leads to a gain in electronic energy and a loss of elastic energy because of the gap-generating phonon. A BCS-like simulation shows that the energy gain is larger than the loss for temperatures below a certain transition temperature, TC. Here, it is shown that the energy count can be almost as favorable for gaps a little below or above EF. Such gaps can be generated by auxiliary phonons (or even spin- and charge-density waves) with k-vectors slightly different from kF. Gaps not too far from EF will add to the energy gain at the superconducting transition. In addition, a DOS-peak can appear at EF and thereby increase N(EF) and TC. A dip in the DOS below EF will result for temperatures below TC, which is similar to what often is observed in cuprate superconductors. The roles of spin waves and thermal disorders are discussed.

Bypassing the Structural Bottleneck in the Ultrafast Melting of Electronic Order

Impulsive optical excitation generally results in a complex nonequilibrium electron and lattice dynamics that involves multiple processes on distinct timescales, and a common conception is that for times shorter than about 100 fs the gap in the electronic spectrum is not seriously affected by lattice vibrations. Here, however, by directly monitoring the photoinduced collapse of the spectral gap in a canonical charge-density-wave material, the blue bronze Rb_{0.3}MoO_{3}, we find that ultrafast (∼60  fs) vibrational disordering due to efficient hot-electron energy dissipation quenches the gap significantly faster than the typical structural bottleneck time corresponding to one half-cycle oscillation (∼315  fs) of the coherent charge-density-wave amplitude mode. This result not only demonstrates the importance of incoherent lattice motion in the photoinduced quenching of electronic order, but also resolves the perennial debate about the nature of the spectral gap in a coupled electron-lattice system.

Structural dynamics of incommensurate charge-density waves tracked by ultrafast low-energy electron diffraction

We study the non-equilibrium structural dynamics of the incommensurate and nearly commensurate charge-density wave (CDW) phases in 1T-TaS 2 . Employing ultrafast low-energy electron diffraction with 1 ps temporal resolution, we investigate the ultrafast quench and recovery of the CDW-coupled periodic lattice distortion (PLD). Sequential structural relaxation processes are observed by tracking the intensities of main lattice as well as satellite diffraction peaks and the diffuse scattering background. Comparing distinct groups of diffraction peaks, we disentangle the ultrafast quench of the PLD amplitude from phonon-related reductions of the diffraction intensity. Fluence-dependent relaxation cycles reveal a long-lived partial suppression of the order parameter for up to 60 ps, far outlasting the initial amplitude recovery and electron-phonon scattering times. This delayed return to a quasi-thermal level is controlled by lattice thermalization and coincides with the population of zone-center acoustic modes, as evidenced by a structured diffuse background. The long-lived non-equilibrium order parameter suppression suggests hot populations of CDW-coupled lattice modes. Finally, a broadening of the superlattice peaks is observed at high fluences, pointing to a non-linear generation of phase fluctuations.

Experimental determination of the bare energy gap of GaAs without the zero-point renormalization

The energy gap of simple band insulators like GaAs is a strong function of temperature due to the electron-phonon interactions. Interestingly, the perturbation from zero-point phonons is also predicted to cause significant (a few percent) renormalization of the energy gap at absolute zero temperature but its value has been difficult to estimate both theoretically and, of course, experimentally. Given the experimental evidence (Bhattacharya et al 2015 Phys. Rev. Lett. 114 047402) that strongly supports that the exponential broadening (Urbach tail) of the excitonic absorption edge at low temperatures is the manifestation of this zero temperature electron-phonon scattering, we argue that the location of the Urbach focus is the zero temperature unrenormalized gap. Experiments on GaAs yield the zero temperature bare energy gap to be 1.581 eV and thus the renormalization is estimated to be 66 meV.

Breakdown of the Migdal approximation at Lifshitz transitions with giant zero-point motion in the H3S superconductor

While 203 K high temperature superconductivity in H₃S has been interpreted by BCS theory in the dirty limit here we focus on the effects of hydrogen zero-point-motion and the multiband electronic structure relevant for multigap superconductivity near Lifshitz transitions. We describe how the topology of the Fermi surfaces evolves with pressure giving different Lifshitz-transitions. A neck-disrupting Lifshitz-transition (type 2) occurs where the van Hove singularity, vHs, crosses the chemical potential at 210 GPa and new small 2D Fermi surface portions appear with slow Fermi velocity where the Migdal-approximation becomes questionable. We show that the neglected hydrogen zero-point motion ZPM, plays a key role at Lifshitz transitions. It induces an energy shift of about 600 meV of the vHs. The other Lifshitz-transition (of type 1) for the appearing of a new Fermi surface occurs at 130 GPa where new Fermi surfaces appear at the Γ point of the Brillouin zone here the Migdal-approximation breaks down and the zero-point-motion induces large fluctuations. The maximum T_c = 203 K occurs at 160 GPa where E_F/ω₀ = 1 in the small Fermi surface pocket at Γ. A Feshbach-like resonance between a possible BEC-BCS condensate at Γ and the BCS condensate in different k-space spots is proposed.

Mechanically induced metal-insulator transition in carbyne

First-principles calculations for carbyne under strain predict that the Peierls transition from symmetric cumulene to broken-symmetry polyyne structure is enhanced as the material is stretched. Interpretation within a simple and instructive analytical model suggests that this behavior is valid for arbitrary 1D metals. Further, numerical calculations of the anharmonic quantum vibrational structure of carbyne show that zero-point atomic vibrations eliminate the Peierls distortion in the mechanically free chain, preserving the cumulene symmetry. The emergence and increase of Peierls dimerization under tension then implies a qualitative transition between the two forms, which our computations place around 3% strain. Thus, the competition between the zero-point vibrations and mechanical strain determines a switch in symmetry resulting in the transition from metallic state to a dielectric, with a small effective mass and a high carrier mobility. In any practical realization, it is important that the effect is also chemically modulated by the choice of terminating groups. These findings are promising for applications such as electromechanical switching and band gap tuning via strain, and besides carbyne itself, they directly extend to numerous other systems that show Peierls distortion.

Charge-density waves arising from two electron bands

A theory for a quasi-one-dimensional incommensurate charge-density wave state arising from electron–phonon (el–phon) interaction connecting electron states in two different bands is presented. An expression for the fundamental component of the energy gap as a function of the effective el–phon coupling, valid for all coupling strengths, has been found. For a single band, the expression simplifies to a reciprocal hyperbolic-sine dependence on the reciprocal effective coupling. The effective coupling, although simply related to the n assumed phonon-band frequencies, is not generally expressible as a sum of independent functions of these frequencies. The theory is applied to tetrathiofulvalinium–tetracyanoquinodimethane and to potassium blue bronze.

Charge-density waves at intermediate coupling

An electron–phonon theory for a quasi-one-dimensional band of electrons forming a moving incommensurate charge-density wave (CDW) state at zero temperature is presented. A useful analytic expression for the energy gap as a function of electron–phonon coupling is found. The gap is quite a bit larger than the well-known weak-coupling result, even for modest coupling, where the mean-field approximation should still be valid. It is also shown that the form of the Hamiltonian implies that there is no spread at all in the wavevector of the CDW in the vicinity of 2 k F . Comparisons of theoretical and experimental values of the energy gap and the lattice displacement amplitude are made for NbSe 3 .

In-chain tunneling through charge-density-wave nanoconstrictions and break junctions

We have fabricated longitudinal nanoconstrictions in the charge-density wave conductor (CDW) NbSe3 using a focused ion beam and using a mechanically controlled break-junction technique. Conductance peaks are observed below the TP1=145 K and TP2=59 K CDW transitions, which correspond closely with previous values of the full CDW gaps 2Delta1 and 2Delta2 obtained from photoemission. These results can be explained by assuming CDW-CDW tunneling in the presence of an energy gap corrugation epsilon2 comparable to Delta2, which eliminates expected peaks at +/-|Delta1+Delta2|. The nanometer length scales our experiments imply indicate that an alternative explanation based on tunneling through back-to-back CDW-normal-conductor junctions is unlikely.