Lattice-decoupled rotatable stripe-like charge order within the strange metal phase of 2M-WS 2
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: In quantum materials, charge orders typically stabilize in specific crystallographic orientations, though their formation mechanisms may vary. Here, using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy, we find a lattice-decoupled rotatable stripe-like charge order coexisting with superconductivity in 2M-WS 2 . The charge order manifests five distinct orientations across different sample regions, yet maintains an identical wavelength. This directional decoupling from host lattice challenges existing paradigms. First-principles calculations of phonon spectra and nesting function fail to explain the ordering mechanism. Intriguingly, the transition temperature of the charge orders exhibits spatial variations (21 to 46 K), coinciding with the temperature range of the recently reported strange metal phase in this material. This correlation suggests that the interplay between strong electronic correlations and electron–phonon coupling must be critically evaluated to elucidate the emergence of this unconventional charge order.
Institutions: State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics, Frontier Science Center for Quantum Information of the Ministry of Education of China, Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Beihang University, Center for Free-Electron Laser Science, Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, State Key Laboratory of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Southern University of Science and Technology, Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences
Language: English
Subfield: Condensed Matter Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Award: G2547657206
OpenAlex ID: W4416651762