Discovery of a long-ranged charge order with 1/4 Ge1-dimerization in an antiferromagnetic Kagome metal.

Exotic quantum states arise from the interplay of various degrees of freedom such as charge, spin, orbital, and lattice. Recently, a short-ranged charge order (CO) was discovered deep inside the antiferromagnetic phase of Kagome magnet FeGe, exhibiting close relationships with magnetism. Despite extensive investigations, the CO mechanism remains controversial, mainly because the short-ranged behavior hinders precise identification of CO superstructure. Here, combining multiple experimental techniques, we report the observation of a long-ranged CO in high-quality FeGe samples, which is accompanied with a first-order structural transition. With these high-quality samples, the distorted 2 × 2 × 2 CO superstructure is characterized by a strong dimerization along the c-axis of 1/4 of Ge1-sites in Fe3Ge layers, and in response to that, the 2 × 2 in-plane charge modulations are induced. Moreover, we show that the previously reported short-ranged CO might be related to large occupational disorders at Ge1-site, which upsets the equilibrium of the CO state and the ideal 1 × 1 × 1 structure with very close energies, inducing nanoscale coexistence of these two phases. Our study provides important clues for further understanding the CO properties in FeGe and helps to identify the CO mechanism.

Charge order driven by multiple-Q spin fluctuations in heavily electron-doped iron selenide superconductors.

Intertwined spin and charge orders have been widely studied in high-temperature superconductors, since their fluctuations may facilitate electron pairing; however, they are rarely identified in heavily electron-doped iron selenides. Here, using scanning tunneling microscopy, we show that when the superconductivity of (Li0.84Fe0.16OH)Fe1-xSe is suppressed by introducing Fe-site defects, a short-ranged checkerboard charge order emerges, propagating along the Fe-Fe directions with an approximately 2aFe period. It persists throughout the whole phase space tuned by Fe-site defect density, from a defect-pinned local pattern in optimally doped samples to an extended order in samples with lower Tc or non-superconducting. Intriguingly, our simulations indicate that the charge order is likely driven by multiple-Q spin density waves originating from the spin fluctuations observed by inelastic neutron scattering. Our study proves the presence of a competing order in heavily electron-doped iron selenides, and demonstrates the potential of charge order as a tool to detect spin fluctuations.

Multiband Superconductivity with Sign-Preserving Order Parameter in Kagome Superconductor CsV_{3}Sb_{5}.

The superconductivity of a kagome superconductor CsV_{3}Sb_{5} is studied by scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy at ultralow temperature with high resolution. Two kinds of superconducting gaps with multiple sets of coherent peaks and residual zero-energy density of states (DOS) are observed on both half-Cs and Sb surfaces, implying multiband superconductivity. In addition, in-gap states can be induced by magnetic impurities but not by nonmagnetic impurities, suggesting a sign-preserving or s-wave superconducting order parameter. Moreover, the interplay between charge density waves (CDW) and superconductivity differs on various bands, resulting in different density-of-states distributions. Our results suggest that the superconducting gap is likely isotropic on the sections of Fermi surface that play little roles in CDW, and the superconducting gaps on the sections of Fermi surface with anisotropic CDW gaps are likely anisotropic as well. The residual spectral weights at zero energy are attributed to the extremely small superconducting gap on the tiny oval Fermi pockets. Our study provides critical clues for further understanding the superconductivity and its relation to CDW in CsV_{3}Sb_{5}.

Superconductivity across Lifshitz transition and anomalous insulating state in surface K-dosed (Li0.8Fe0.2OH)FeSe.

In iron-based superconductors, understanding the relation between superconductivity and electronic structure upon doping is crucial for exploring the pairing mechanism. Recently, it was found that, in iron selenide (FeSe), enhanced superconductivity (Tc of more than 40 K) can be achieved via electron doping, with the Fermi surface only comprising M-centered electron pockets. By using surface K dosing, scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy, and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we studied the electronic structure and superconductivity of (Li0.8Fe0.2OH)FeSe in the deep electron-doped regime. We find that a Γ-centered electron band, which originally lies above the Fermi level (EF), can be continuously tuned to cross EF and contribute a new electron pocket at Γ. When this Lifshitz transition occurs, the superconductivity in the M-centered electron pocket is slightly suppressed, and a possible superconducting gap with a small size (up to ~5 meV) and a dome-like doping dependence is observed on the new Γ electron pocket. Upon further K dosing, the system eventually evolves into an insulating state. Our findings provide new clues to understand superconductivity versus Fermi surface topology and the correlation effect in FeSe-based superconductors.