Simultaneous transitions in cuprate momentum-space topology and electronic symmetry breaking.
Science 2014;
344:612-6. [PMID:
24812397 DOI:
10.1126/science.1248783]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 185] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The existence of electronic symmetry breaking in the underdoped cuprates and its disappearance with increased hole density p are now widely reported. However, the relation between this transition and the momentum-space (k-space) electronic structure underpinning the superconductivity has not yet been established. Here, we visualize the Q = 0 (intra-unit-cell) and Q ≠ 0 (density-wave) broken-symmetry states, simultaneously with the coherent k-space topology, for Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O(8+δ) samples spanning the phase diagram 0.06 ≤ p ≤ 0.23. We show that the electronic symmetry-breaking tendencies weaken with increasing p and disappear close to a critical doping p(c) = 0.19. Concomitantly, the coherent k-space topology undergoes an abrupt transition, from arcs to closed contours, at the same p(c). These data reveal that the k-space topology transformation in cuprates is linked intimately with the disappearance of the electronic symmetry breaking at a concealed critical point.
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