Nature of charge density wave in kagome metal ScV6Sn6

• Published in: npj quantum materials Vol. 9; no. 1; pp. 15 - 8
• Main Authors: Lee, Seongyong, Won, Choongjae, Kim, Jimin, Yoo, Jonggyu, Park, Sudong, Denlinger, Jonathan, Jozwiak, Chris, Bostwick, Aaron, Rotenberg, Eli, Comin, Riccardo, Kang, Mingu, Park, Jae-Hoon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 29-01-2024; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 639/301/119/2795; 639/766/119/995; Broken symmetry; Charge density waves; Condensed Matter Physics; Electrons; Kagome lattice; Lattice vibration; Phase diagrams; Phase transitions; Phonons; Photoelectric emission; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Quantum Physics; Structural Materials; Surfaces and Interfaces; Symmetry; Thin Films
• ISSN: 2397-4648; 2397-4648
• DOI: 10.1038/s41535-024-00620-y

Recently, kagome lattice materials have emerged as a new model material platform for discovering and engineering novel quantum phases of matter. In this work, we elucidate the driving mechanism of the
3
×
3
charge order in a newly discovered kagome metal ScV
6
Sn
6
. Through multimodal investigations combining angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, phonon dispersion calculations, and phase diagram study, we identify the central role of unstable planar Sn and Sc phonon modes, while the electronic instability and van Hove singularities originating from the V kagome lattice have a marginal influence. Our results highlight that the
3
×
3
charge order in ScV
6
Sn
6
is fundamentally distinguished from the electronically driven 2 × 2 charge order in the canonical kagome system AV
3
Sb
5
, uncovering a new mechanism to induce symmetry-breaking phase transition in kagome lattice materials.