Uniaxial pressure control of competing orders in a high-temperature superconductor

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 362; no. 6418; pp. 1040 - 1044
• Main Authors: Kim, H-H, Souliou, S M, Barber, M E, Lefrançois, E, Minola, M, Tortora, M, Heid, R, Nandi, N, Borzi, R A, Garbarino, G, Bosak, A, Porras, J, Loew, T, König, M, Moll, P J W, Mackenzie, A P, Keimer, B, Hicks, C W, Le Tacon, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States The American Association for the Advancement of Science 30.11.2018
• Subjects: Antiferromagnetism; Charge density waves; Climate; Cuprates; High temperature superconductors; Inelastic scattering; Magnetic fields; Magnetism; Optical lattices; Phase diagrams; Pressure; Superconductivity; Superconductors; Temperature effects; Transition temperature; Transition temperatures; X-ray scattering; Yttrium
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.aat4708

Cuprates exhibit antiferromagnetic, charge density wave (CDW), and high-temperature superconducting ground states that can be tuned by means of doping and external magnetic fields. However, disorder generated by these tuning methods complicates the interpretation of such experiments. Here, we report a high-resolution inelastic x-ray scattering study of the high-temperature superconductor YBa Cu O under uniaxial stress, and we show that a three-dimensional long-range-ordered CDW state can be induced through pressure along the axis, in the absence of magnetic fields. A pronounced softening of an optical phonon mode is associated with the CDW transition. The amplitude of the CDW is suppressed below the superconducting transition temperature, indicating competition with superconductivity. The results provide insights into the normal-state properties of cuprates and illustrate the potential of uniaxial-pressure control of competing orders in quantum materials.