Quasi-particle evidence for the nematic state above $T_{\mathrm{c}}$ in Sr${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$

Abstract

In the electronic nematic state, an electronic system has a lower symmetry than the crystal structure of the same system. Electronic nematic states have been observed in various unconventional superconductors such as cuprate- and iron-based, heavy-fermion, and topological superconductors. The relation between nematicity and superconductivity is a major unsolved problem in condensed matter physics. By angle-resolved specific heat measurements, we report bulk quasi-particle evidence of nematicity in the topological superconductor Sr${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$. The specific heat exhibited a clear 2-fold symmetry despite the 6-fold symmetric lattice. Most importantly, the 2-fold symmetry appeared in the normal state above the superconducting transition temperature. This is explained by the angle-dependent Zeeman effect due to the anisotropic density of states in the nematic phase. Such results highlight the interrelation between nematicity and unconventional superconductivity.

arXiv comment10 pages, 10 figures

References in corpus (22)

• First observation of Spin-Momentum Helical Locking in Bi2Se3 and Bi2Te3, demonstration of Topological-Order at 300K and a realization of topological-transport-regime
• Nematic order in iron superconductors - who is in the driver's seat?
• Superconductivity in CuxBi2Se3 and its implications for pairing in the undoped topological insulator
• Evidence for an electron nematic phase transition in underdoped iron pnictide superconductors
• Odd-Parity Topological Superconductors: Theory and Application to Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Broken rotational symmetry in the pseudogap phase of a high-Tc superconductor
• Nematic and meta-nematic transitions in the iron pnictides
• Spin-Rotation Symmetry Breaking in the Superconducting State of CuxBi2Se3
• Thermodynamic evidence for nematic superconductivity in Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Superconductivity with topological surface state in SrxBi2Se3
• Rotational Symmetry Breaking in the Hidden-Order Phase of URu2Si2
• Odd-parity topological superconductor with nematic order: Application to CuxBi2Se3
• Photoelectron spin-flipping and texture manipulation in a topological insulator
• Rotational Symmetry Breaking in a Trigonal superconductor Nb-doped Bi2Se3
• Electronic in-plane symmetry breaking at field-tuned quantum criticality in CeRhIn5
• Vestigial nematic order and superconductivity in the doped topological insulator Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Direct visualization of the nematic superconductivity in Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Superconductivity with two-fold symmetry in topological superconductor SrxBi2Se3
• Electronic structure of a superconducting topological insulator Sr-doped Bi2Se3
• Structural distortion behind the nematic superconductivity in Sr${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Gap structure of FeSe determined by field-angle-resolved specific heat measurements
• Nanocalorimetric Evidence for Nematic Superconductivity in the Doped Topological Insulator Sr${}_{0.1}$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$

Cited by in corpus (30)

• A comprehensive review on topological superconducting materials and interfaces
• Charge-$4e$ superconductivity from multi-component nematic pairing: Application to twisted bilayer graphene
• $Z_3$-vestigial nematic order due to superconducting fluctuations in the doped topological insulator Nb${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$ and Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Uniaxial-strain Control of Nematic Superconductivity in Sr${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Strain-driven nematicity of the odd-parity superconductivity in Sr${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Link between superconductivity and a Lifshitz transition in intercalated Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Cascade of vestigial orders in two-component superconductors: nematic, ferromagnetic, s-wave charge-4e, and d-wave charge-4e states
• Signatures of Nematic Superconductivity in Doped Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$ under Applied Stress
• Twofold symmetry of proximity-induced superconductivity in Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$/Bi${}_2$Sr${}_2$CaCu${}_2$O${}_{8+\delta }$ heterostructures revealed by scanning tunneling microscopy
• Half Quantum Vortices in Nematic Superconductor
• Phonon-driven ultrafast symmetry lowering in a Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$ crystal
• Phonon-induced rotation of the electronic nematic director in superconducting Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Strain-tuned quantum criticality in electronic Potts-nematic systems
• Classification of electronic nematicity in three-dimensional crystals and quasicrystals
• The absence of Ginzburg-Landau mechanism for vestigial order in the normal phase above a two-component superconductor
• Breaking of Ginzburg-Landau description in the temperature dependence of the anisotropy in the nematic superconductor
• Erasable superconductivity in topological insulator Bi2Se3 induced by voltage pulse
• Fully gapped superconductivity without sign reversal in the topological superconductor PbTaSe${}_2$
• Probing three-state Potts nematic fluctuations by ultrasound attenuation
• Local condensation of charge-$4e$ superconductivity at a nematic domain wall
• A critical nematic phase with pseudogap-like behavior in twisted bilayers
• Odd-frequency pairs and anomalous proximity effect in nematic and chiral states of superconducting topological insulators
• Spontaneous Lattice Distortion in the Spin-Triplet Superconductor Cu${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Shear Modulus Anomaly of Unconventional Superconductor in a Symmetry Breaking Field
• Compatible Instability: Gauge Constraints of Elasticity Inherited by Electronic Nematic Criticality
• On the existence of nematic-superconducting states in the Ginzburg-Landau regime
• Orbital selective order and ${\mathbb{Z}}_3$ Potts nematicity from a non-Fermi liquid
• Surface chiral superconductivity in odd-parity nematic superconductors with magnetic impurities
• Multiple magnetic orders discovered in the superconducting state of EuFe${}_2$(As${}_{1-x}$P${}_x$)${}_2$
• Reflection anisotropy experiments to study non-equilibrium dynamics of electronic nematicity