Coexisting Electronic Smectic Liquid Crystal and Superconductivity in a Si Square-Net Semimetal

Christopher J. Butler; Toshiya Ikenobe; Ming-Chun Jiang; Daigorou Hirai; Takahiro Yamada; Guang-Yu Guo; Ryotaro Arita; Tetsuo Hanaguri; Zenji Hiroi

doi:10.1103/qfqm-qp82

Coexisting Electronic Smectic Liquid Crystal and Superconductivity in a Si Square-Net Semimetal

Christopher J. Butler, Toshiya Ikenobe, Ming-Chun Jiang, Daigorou Hirai, Takahiro Yamada, Guang-Yu Guo, Ryotaro Arita, Tetsuo Hanaguri, Zenji Hiroi

DOI 10.1103/qfqm-qp82 · Physical Review Letters

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Abstract

Electronic nematic and smectic liquid crystals are spontaneous symmetry-breaking phases that are seen to precede or coexist with enigmatic unconventional superconducting states in multiple classes of materials. In this Letter we describe scanning tunneling microscopy observations of a short ranged charge stripe (smectic) order in NaAlSi, whose superconductivity is speculated to have an unconventional origin. As well as this we resolve a clear spatial modulation of the superconducting gap amplitude, which arises due to the intertwined superconducting and smectic orders. Numerical calculations help to understand the possible driving mechanism as a suppression of kinetic energy on the Fermi surface formed in part by two large, flat-topped hole pockets of p-orbital character.

Source-reported materials — not catalogue approval

Formula	Reported Tc (K)	Pressure (GPa)	Type
NaAlSi Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula.	7.2	Pressure not reported	unknown
NaAlSi Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula.	—	Pressure not reported	unknown