Charge order dynamics in underdoped La$\mathbf{_{1.6-\textit{x}}}$Nd$\mathbf{_{0.4}}$Sr$\mathbf{{_\textit{x}}}$CuO$\mathbf{_{4}}$ revealed by electric pulses

TL;DR

This study uses pulsed current injection to explore the nonthermal dynamics of charge-order domains in a stripe-ordered cuprate, revealing metastable states and charge order pinning effects near the transition temperature.

Contribution

It demonstrates that pulsed current injection can effectively probe nonthermal charge-order dynamics and metastable states in cuprates, a novel application in this context.

Findings

Identification of nonthermal regime over Joule heating

Access to nonthermally-induced resistive metastable states

Charge order fluctuations are most pronounced at onset temperature

Abstract

The dynamics of the charge-order domains has been investigated in La$_{1.48}$Nd$_{0.4}$Sr$_{0.12}$CuO$_{4}$, a prototypical stripe-ordered cuprate, using pulsed current injection. We first identify the regime in which nonthermal effects dominate over simple Joule heating, and then demonstrate that, for small enough perturbation, pulsed current injection allows access to nonthermally-induced resistive metastable states. The results are consistent with pinning of the fluctuating charge order, with fluctuations being most pronounced at the charge-order onset temperature. The nonequilibrium effects are revealed only when the transition is approached from the charge-ordered phase. Our experiment establishes pulsed current injection as a viable and effective method for probing the charge-order dynamics in various other materials.