Resistive anisotropy in the charge density wave phase of Kagome superconductor CsV3Sb5 thin films

TL;DR

This study reveals temperature-dependent resistive anisotropy and potential chiral charge order in CsV3Sb5 thin films within the charge density wave phase, shedding light on electronic nematicity and symmetry breaking in Kagome superconductors.

Contribution

It introduces a novel device structure for measuring resistivity anisotropy in CsV3Sb5 thin films and demonstrates the presence of electronic nematicity and possible chiral charge order.

Findings

Resistivity anisotropy modulated by temperature

Evidence of electronic nematicity in CsV3Sb5

Modest changes in anisotropy under magnetic fields

Abstract

We investigate the resistive anisotropy in CsV3Sb5 thin films within the charge density wave phase. Using a device structure with twelve electrodes symmetrically distributed in a circular shape, we measure the resistivity anisotropy by varying the current direction. A twofold resistivity anisotropy modulated by temperature is found, which is fully consistent with the electronic nematicity in CsV3Sb5, that is, the spontaneous rotational symmetry breaking by electronic degree of freedom. Additionally, the resistivity anisotropy also shows modest changes by applying magnetic fields, implying the possible chiral charge orders with time-reversal symmetry breaking. These findings provide deep insights into the correlated electronic states in Kagome materials and highlight the unique properties of CsV3Sb5 in the two-dimensional regime.