Kagome metals AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, and Cs) exhibit superconductivity at 0.9-2.5 K and charge-density wave (CDW) at 78-103 K. Key electronic states associated with the CDW and superconductivity remain elusive. Here, we investigate low-energy excitations of CsV3Sb5 by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. We found an energy gap of 70-100 meV at the Dirac-crossing points of linearly dispersive bands, pointing to an importance of spin-orbit coupling. We also found a signature of strongly Fermi-surface and momentum-dependent CDW gap characterized by the larger energy gap of maximally 70 meV for a band forming a saddle point around the M point, the smaller (0-18 meV) gap for a band forming massive Dirac cones, and a zero gap at the Gamma-centered electron pocket. The observed highly anisotropic CDW gap which is enhanced around the M point signifies an importance of scattering channel connecting the saddle points, laying foundation for understanding the nature of CDW and superconductivity in AV3Sb5.
Linear nonsaturating magnetoresistance (LMR) represents a class of anomalous resistivity response to external magnetic field that has been observed in a variety of materials including but not limited to topological semi-metals, high-Tc superconductors and materials with charge/spin density wave (CDW/SDW) orders. Here we report the observation of LMR in layered kagome superconductor and CDW material CsV3Sb5 thin flakes, as well as the dimensional crossover and temperature (T) crossover of such LMR. Specifically, in ultrathin CsV3Sb5 crystals, the magnetoresistance (MR) exhibits a crossover from…
Since the discovery of a new family of vanadium-based kagome superconductor AV3Sb5 (A=K, Rb, and Cs) with topological band structures, extensive effort has been devoted to exploring the origin of superconducting states and the intertwined orders. Meanwhile, searching for new types of superconductors with novel physical properties and higher superconducting transition temperatures has always been a major thread in the history of superconductor research. Here we report a successful fabrication and the topological states of a Titanium-based kagome metal CsTi3Bi5 (CT3B5) crystal. The as-grown CT3B…
Recently the kagome compounds have inspired enormous interest and made some great progress such as in the field of superconductivity and topology. Here we predict a different kagome magnesium triboride (MgB3) superconductor with a calculated Tc ~12.2 K and Tc ~15.4 K by external stress, the potentially highest among the reported diverse kagome-type superconductors. We reveal its various exotic physical properties including the van Hove singularity, flat-band, multiple Dirac points, and nontrivial topology. The system can be described by a two-band model with highly anisotropic superconducting …
Polar surface and interface play a pivotal role for realizing exotic properties of materials, and a search for such polar states is of crucial importance for expanding materials' functionality. Here we report micro-focused angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy of CsV3Sb5, a member of recently discovered kagome superconductors AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, Cs), and show evidence for the polar nature of cleaved surface which is characterized by Cs- and Sb-terminated surfaces with markedly different fermiology. The Cs-terminated surface shows intriguing doubling of V-derived bands at low temperature ass…
Kagome lattices offer a fertile ground to explore exotic quantum phenomena associated with electron correlation and band topology. The recent discovery of superconductivity coexisting with charge-density wave (CDW) in the kagome metals KV3Sb5, RbV3Sb5, and CsV3Sb5 suggests an intriguing entanglement of electronic order and superconductivity. However, the microscopic origin of CDW, a key to understanding the superconducting mechanism and its possible topological nature, remains elusive. Here, we report angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy of KV3Sb5 and demonstrate a substantial reconstruct…
A kagome lattice naturally features Dirac fermions, flat bands and van Hove singularities in its electronic structure. The Dirac fermions encode topology, flat bands favour correlated phenomena such as magnetism, and van Hove singularities can lead to instabilities towards long-range many-body orders, altogether allowing for the realization and discovery of a series of topological kagome magnets and superconductors with exotic properties. Recent progress in exploring kagome materials has revealed rich emergent phenomena resulting from the quantum interactions between geometry, topology, spin a…
Kagome metals AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, and Cs) exhibit a unique superconducting ground state coexisting with charge-density wave (CDW), whereas how these characteristics are affected by carrier doping remains unexplored because of the lack of an efficient carrier-doping method. Here we report successful electron doping to CsV3Sb5 by Cs dosing, as visualized by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. We found that the electron doping with Cs dosing proceeds in an orbital-selective way, as characterized by a marked increase in electron filling of the Sb 5pz and V 3dxz/yz bands as opposed to relativ…
Kagome metals AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, and Cs) exhibit a characteristic superconducting ground state coexisting with charge-density wave (CDW), whereas the mechanisms of the superconductivity and CDW have yet to be clarified. Here we report a systematic ARPES study of Cs(V1-xNbx)3Sb5 as a function of Nb content x, where isovalent Nb substitution causes an enhancement of superconducting transition temperature (Tc) and the reduction of CDW temperature (TCDW). We found that the Nb substitution shifts the Sb-derived electron band at the Gamma point downward and simultaneously moves the V-derived band ar…
The superconducting gap structures in the transition-metal-based kagome metal AV$_3$Sb$_5$ (A=K,Rb,Cs), the first family of quasi-two-dimensional kagome superconductors, remain elusive as there is strong experimental evidence for both nodal and nodaless gap structures. Here we show that the dichotomy can be resolved because of the coexistence of time-reversal symmetry breaking with a conventional fully gapped superconductivity. The symmetry protects the edge states which arise on the domains of the lattice symmetry breaking order to remain gapless in proximity to a conventional pairing. We dem…
A recent Little-Parks experiment on Kagome-structured superconductor CsV_3Sb_5 demonstrated remarkable resistance oscillations with period \phi0/3=hc/6e. Here, we perform analysis based on a theory involving three 2e superconductivity (SC) order parameters associated with the three reciprocal lattice vectors which connect M points of the hexagonal Brillouin zone. In a ring geometry we unveil that, as a series of metastable states, phase of one SC order parameter winds 2πmore or less than the other two ones around the ring, which yields local free energy minima at integer multiples of \phi0/3. …
A Strongly Anisotropic Superconducting Gap in the Kagome Superconductor CsV$_3$Sb$_5$: A Study of Directional Point-Contact Andreev Reflection Spectroscopy
We studied the effects of multiband electronic structure on the thermoelectric and electrical transport properties in the normal state of kagome superconductors $A$V$_3$Sb$_5$ ($A$ = K, Rb, Cs). In all three members, the multiband nature is manifested by sign changes in the temperature dependence of the Seebeck and Hall resistivity, together with sublinear response of the isothermal Nernst and Hall effects to external magnetic fields in the charge ordered state. Moreover, ambipolar transport effects appear ubiquitously in all three systems, giving rise to sizable Nernst signal. Finally, possib…
The newly discovered Kagome superconductors $A$V$_3$Sb$_5$ ($A$ = K, Rb, Cs) exhibit superconductivity, charge order, and band topology simultaneously. To explore the intricate interplay between the superconducting and charge orders, we investigate the doping evolution of superconductivity, charge-density-wave (CDW) order, and band topology in doped topological kagome superconductors Cs(V$_{1-x}$Ti$_x$)$_3$Sb$_5$ where the Ti-dopant introduces hole-like charge carriers. Despite the absence of the CDW phase transition in doped compounds even for the lowest doping level of $x=0.047$, the superco…
Time-Reversal Symmetry Breaking Superconducting State and Collective Modes in Kagome Superconductors
Capital Normal University（首都师范大学）；Kavli Institute for Theoretical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学理论科学研究所）；Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院物理研究所北京凝聚态物理国家研究中心）；School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学物理科学学院）；Institute of Theoretical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院理论物理研究所）
The superconductivity of a kagome superconductor CsV3Sb5 is studied by scanning tunneling microscopy / spectroscopy at an ultralow temperature with high resolution. Two kinds of superconducting gaps with multiple sets of coherent peaks and residual zero-energy density of states are observed on both half-Cs and Sb surfaces, implying multiband superconductivity with gap nodes. Sixfold star-shaped magnetic vortex is observed with conventional Caroli-de Gennes-Matricon bound states inside. Magnetic impurities suppress the superconductivity, while nonmagnetic impurities do not, suggesting the absen…
Materials with transition metals in triangular lattices are of great interest for their potential combination of strong correlation, exotic magnetism and electronic topology. Kagome nets are of particular importance since the discovery of geometrically frustrated magnetism and topological band structures in crystals like Herbertsmithite and Fe3Sn2, respectively. KV3Sb5 was discovered to be a layered topological metal with a Kagome net of vanadium. Here, we fabricated Josephson Junctions (JJ) of K1-xV3Sb5 and induced superconductivity over long junction lengths. Through magnetoresistance and cu…
We argue that the topological charge density wave phase in the quasi-2D Kagome superconductor AV$_3$Sb$_5$ is a chiral flux phase. Considering the symmetry of the Kagome lattice, we show that the chiral flux phase has the lowest energy among those states which exhibit $2\times2$ charge orders observed experimentally. This state breaks the time-reversal symmetry and displays anomalous Hall effect. The explicit pattern of the density of this state in real space is calculated. These results are supported by recent experiments and suggest that these materials are a new platform to investigate the …
We report muon spin rotation ($μ$SR) experiments on the microscopic properties of superconductivity and magnetism in the kagome superconductor CeRu$_{2}$ with $T_{\rm c}$~${\simeq}$~5~K. From the measurements of the temperature-dependent magnetic penetration depth $λ$, the superconducting order parameter exhibits nodeless pairing, which fits best to an anisotropic $s$-wave gap symmetry. We further show that the $T_{\rm c}$/$λ^{-2}$ ratio is comparable to that of unconventional superconductors. Furthermore, the powerful combination of zero-field (ZF)-$μ$SR and high-field $μ$SR has been used to …
CsV3Sb5 is a newly discovered Z2 topological kagome metal showing the coexistence of a charge density wave (CDW)-like order at T* = 94 K and superconductivity (SC) at Tc = 2.5 K at ambient pressure. Here we study the interplay between CDW and SC in CsV3Sb5 via measurements of resistivity and magnetic susceptibility under hydrostatic pressures. We find that the CDW transition decreases with pressure and experience a subtle modification at Pc1 = 0.6-0.9 GPa before it vanishes completely at Pc2 = 2 GPa. Correspondingly, Tc(P) displays an unusual M-shaped double dome character with two maxima arou…
Spatially anisotropic Kondo resonance coupled with the superconducting gap in a kagome metal
Beijing National Center for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院物理研究所）；School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学物理科学学院）；Hefei National Laboratory（合肥国家实验室）；Beijing Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Functional Materials & Micro-Nano Devices, School of Physics, Renmin University of China（中国人民大学物理学院）；Department of Physics, Boston College（波士顿学院物理系）
The kagome lattice of transition metal atoms provides an exciting platform to study electronic correlations in the presence of geometric frustration and nontrivial band topology, which continues to bear surprises. In this work, using spectroscopic imaging scanning tunneling microscopy, we discover a cascade of different symmetry-broken electronic states as a function of temperature in a new kagome superconductor, CsV3Sb5. At a temperature far above the superconducting transition Tc ~ 2.5 K, we reveal a tri-directional charge order with a 2a0 period that breaks the translation symmetry of the l…
Materials with a kagome lattice provide a platform for searching for new electronic phases and investigating the interplay between correlation and topology. Various probes have recently shown that the kagome lattice can host diverse quantum phases with intertwined orders, including charge density wave states, bond density wave states, chiral charge order, and, rarely, superconductivity. However, reports of the coexistence of superconductivity and magnetic order in kagome materials remain elusive. Here we revisit a magnetic superconductor CeRu$_2$ with a kagome network formed by Ru atoms. Our f…
New materials based on Kagome lattices, predicted to host exotic quantum physics because they can display flat electronic bands, Dirac cones and topologically nontrivial surface states, are strongly desired. Here we report the crystal structure and superconducting properties of LaIr3Ga2, a previously unreported material that is based on a Kagome lattice of the heavy atom Ir. LaIr3Ga2 is a type II superconductor with Tc ~ 5.2 K, mu0Hc1 (0) ~ 7.1 mT and mu0Hc2 (0) ~ 4.7 T. The normalized heat capacity jump at the superconducting transition, (deltaC/gammaTc), 1.41, is within error of the value ex…
Layered kagome metals AV3Sb5 (A=K, Rb, Cs) exhibit diverse correlated electron phenomena. It includes charge density wave formation and superconductivity the pairing symmetry of which, however, is controversial due to contradictory experimental evidence. Through calculations based on real-space lattice models at the mean-field level, we investigate the vortex and surface spectra of all competitive pairing propensities suggested for AV3Sb5 from a weak coupling analysis of unconventional superconductivity. Chiral p-wave pairing emerges as the only option to host Majorana bound states in the vort…
The vanadium-based kagome superconductor CsV3Sb5 has attracted tremendous attention due to its unexcepted anomalous Hall effect (AHE), charge density waves (CDWs), nematicity, and a pseudogap pair density wave (PDW) coexisting with unconventional strong-coupling superconductivity (SC). The origins of CDWs, unconventional SC, and their correlation with different electronic states in this kagome system are of great significance, but so far, are still under debate. Chemical doping in the kagome layer provides one of the most direct ways to reveal the intrinsic physics, but remains unexplored. Her…
Owing to its inherent non-trivial geometry, the unique structural motif of the recently discovered Kagome topological superconductor AV3Sb5 is an ideal host of diverse topologically non-trivial phenomena, including giant anomalous Hall conductivity, topological charge order, charge density wave, and unconventional superconductivity. Despite possessing a normal-state CDW order in the form of topological chiral charge order and diverse superconducting gaps structures, it remains unclear how fundamental atomic-level properties and many-body effects including Fermi surface nesting, electron-phonon…
The quasi two-dimensional (quasi-2D) kagome materials AV$_3$Sb$_5$ (A=K, Rb, Cs) were found to be a prime example of kagome superconductors, a new quantum platform to investigate the interplay between electron correlation effects, topology and geometric frustration. In this review, we report recent progress on the experimental and theoretical studies of AV$_3$Sb$_5$ and provide a broad picture of this fast-developing field in order to stimulate an expanded search for unconventional kagome superconductors. We review the electronic properties of AV$_3$Sb$_5$, the experimental measurements of the…
Recently discovered kagome superconductors AV3Sb5 (A=K, Rb, Cs) provide a fresh opportunity to realize and study correlation-driven electronic phenomena on a kagome lattice. The observation of a 2a0 by 2a0 charge density wave (CDW) in the normal state of all members of AV3Sb5 kagome family has generated an enormous amount of interest, in an effort to uncover the nature of this CDW state, and identify any "hidden" broken symmetries. We use spectroscopic-imaging scanning tunneling microscopy to reveal a pronounced intensity anisotropy between different 2a0 CDW directions in KV3Sb5. In particular…
Recently synthesized Kagome compounds AV$_3$Sb$_5$ attract great attention due to the unusual coexistence of the topology, charge density wave and superconductivity. In this {\it Letter}, based on the band structures for CsV$_3$Sb$_5$ in pristine phase, we fit an effective 6-band model for the low-energy processes; utilizing the random phase approximation (RPA) on the effective minimal model, we obtain the momentum-resolved static spin susceptibility attributing the spin-fluctuation pairing mechanism, we find that the superconducting pairing strengths increase with the lift of the Coulomb corr…
We report the transport properties of kagome superconductor CsV$_{3}$Sb$_{5}$ single crystals at magnetic field up to 32 T. The Shubnikov de Haas (SdH) oscillations emerge at low temperature and four frequencies of $F_α=$ 27 T, $F_β=$ 73 T, $F_ε=$ 727 T, and $F_η=$ 786 T with relatively small cyclotron masses are observed. For $F_β$ and $F_ε$, the Berry phases are close to $π$, providing a clear evidence of nontrivial topological band structures of CsV$_{3}$Sb$_{5}$. Furthermore, the consistence between theoretical calculations and experimental results implies that these frequencies can be ass…
Josephson spectroscopy study of kagome superconductors toward the deep point-contact regime
Quantum Science Center of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area（粤港澳大湾区量子科学中心）；State Key Laboratory of Quantum Functional Materials, Department of Physics, and Guangdong Basic Research Center of Excellence for Quantum Science, Southern University of Science and Technology（南方科技大学）
Nonreciprocal charge transport phenomena are widely studied in two-dimensional superconductors, which demonstrate unidirectional-anisotropy magnetoresistances as a result of symmetry breaking. Here, we report a strong nonreciprocal transport phenomenon in superconducting CsV$_{3}$Sb$_{5}$ thin flakes. The second harmonic voltages, mainly originating from the rectification effect of vortex motion, are unambiguously developed with in-plane and out-of-plane magnetic fields, and their magnitudes are comparable to those in noncentrosymmetric superconductors. The second harmonic magnetoresistances s…
The kagome lattice, the most prominent structural motif in quantum physics, benefits from inherent nontrivial geometry to host diverse quantum phases, ranging from spin-liquid phases, topological matter to intertwined orders, and most rarely unconventional superconductivity. Recently, charge sensitive probes have suggested that the kagome superconductors AV_3Sb_5 (A = K, Rb, Cs) (A = K, Rb, Cs) exhibit unconventional chiral charge order, which is analogous to the long-sought-after quantum order in the Haldane model or Varma model. However, direct evidence for the time-reversal symmetry-breakin…
Motivated by recent experimental evidences signalling the chiral charge order in the vanadium-based kagome superconductors, we theoretically investigate the impact of the chiral flux charge order over the experimental outcomes for the normal and the SC properties. It is revealed that the spectral weight on the Fermi surface (FS) is partially gaped by the chiral flux charge order with the reservation of the spectral weight on the $M$ points and the midpoint between the two adjacent $M$ points, resulting in the momentum-dependent energy gap being consistent with the recent experimental observati…
Pressure evolution of the superconducting kagome metal CsV$_3$Sb$_5$ is studied with single-crystal x-ray diffraction and density-functional band-structure calculations. A highly anisotropic compression observed up to 5 GPa is ascribed to the fast shrinkage of the Cs-Sb distances and suppression of Cs rattling motion. This prevents Sb displacements required to stabilize the three-dimensional charge-density-wave (CDW) order and elucidates the disappearance of the CDW already at 2 GPa despite only minor changes in the electronic structure of the normal state. At higher pressures, vanadium bands …
$A$V$_3$Sb$_5$ ($A$ = K, Rb, Cs) is a novel kagome superconductor coexisting with the charge density wave (CDW) order. Identifying the structure of the CDW order is crucial for understanding the exotic normal state and superconductivity in this system. Here, we report $^{51}$V nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and $^{121/123}$Sb nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) studies on kagome-metal CsV$_3$Sb$_5$. Below the CDW transition temperature $T_\textrm{CDW} \sim$ 98 K, an abrupt change of spectra was observed, indicating that the transition is of the first order. By further analysing the spectra, w…
