Tunable unconventional kagome superconductivity in charge ordered RbV3Sb5 and KV3Sb5
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- s41467-022-35718-z
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Unconventional superconductors often feature competing orders, small superfluid density, and nodal electronic pairing. While unusual superconductivity has been proposed in the kagome metals AV(3)Sb(5), key spectroscopic evidence has remained elusive. Here we utilize pressure-tuned and ultra-low temperature muon spin spectroscopy to uncover the unconventional nature of superconductivity in RbV3Sb5 and KV3Sb5. At ambient pressure, we observed time-reversal symmetry breaking charge order below T-1*similar or equal to 110 K in RbV3Sb5 with an additional transition at T-2*similar or equal to 50 K. Remarkably, the superconducting state displays a nodal energy gap and a reduced superfluid density, which can be attributed to the competition with the charge order. Upon applying pressure, the charge-order transitions are suppressed, the superfluid density increases, and the superconducting state progressively evolves from nodal to nodeless. Once optimal superconductivity is achieved, we find a superconducting pairing state that is not only fully gapped, but also spontaneously breaks time-reversal symmetry. Our results point to unprecedented tunable nodal kagome superconductivity competing with time-reversal symmetry-breaking charge order and offer unique insights into the nature of the pairing state.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 153 |
Journal | Nature Communications |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 1 |
Number of pages | 10 |
ISSN | 2041-1723 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 11 Jan 2023 |
- MAGNETIC PENETRATION DEPTH, MU-SR, DENSITY, MODEL
Research areas
ID: 347879755