Coexistence of zigzag antiferromagnetic order and superconductivity in compressed NiPSe3

TL;DR

This study reveals that compressed NiPSe3 undergoes structural and electronic phase transitions, including a Mott insulator-metal transition and the emergence of superconductivity, coexisting with antiferromagnetic order, akin to high-temperature superconductors.

Contribution

It demonstrates the coexistence of antiferromagnetic order and superconductivity in NiPSe3 under pressure, highlighting a bandwidth-controlled Mott transition and providing insights into related high-temperature superconductors.

Findings

Structural transitions occur at specific pressures.

Superconductivity emerges at 8.0 GPa with Tc of 4.8 K.

Antiferromagnetic order coexists with superconductivity.

Abstract

NiPSe3 is regarded as a bandwidth-controlled Mott insulator, distinct from the widely studied Mott insulating magnetic graphene MPSe3 (M = Mn and Fe) family. By employing high-pressure synchrotron X-ray diffraction, we observe two structural transitions as a function of pressure. With the help of first-principles calculations, we discover the antiferromagnetic (AFM) moment directions of NiPSe3 switch from out-of-plane to in-plane and the honeycomb layers slide relative to each other at the first structural transition. The in-plane AFM order persists until the second structural transition, whereupon the two-dimensional (2D) structure assumes a more three-dimensional (3D) character. A bandwidth-controlled Mott insulator-metal transition (IMT) occurs between the two structural transitions at 8.0 GPa, concomitant with the emergence of superconductivity with 4.8 K. The superconductivity in NiPSe3 emerging in the 2D monoclinic phase coexists with the in-plane AFM order and continues into the 3D trigonal phase. Our electronic structure calculations reveal that the Mott IMT and superconductivity in NiPSe3 are both closely related to the enhanced Se2- 4p and Ni2+ 3d electronic hybridizations under pressure. From these results, we construct the temperature-pressure electronic phase diagram of NiPSe3, revealing rich physics and many similarities with copper oxide and iron-based superconductors.