Giant Third-Order Nonlinearity Induced by the Quantum Metric Quadrupole in Few-Layer WTe2

TL;DR

This study demonstrates the first experimental observation of third-order nonlinear electrical response in few-layer WTe2, driven by the quantum metric quadrupole, revealing new insights into quantum geometric properties of topological materials.

Contribution

It provides the first experimental evidence of quantum metric quadrupole-induced third-order nonlinearity in a real material, expanding understanding of quantum geometric effects beyond second order.

Findings

Third-order nonlinear response observed in WTe2

Quantum metric quadrupole identified as the origin

Third-order nonlinearity reveals quantum metric structure

Abstract

The quantum geometric properties of topological materials underpin many exotic physical phenomena and applications. Quantum nonlinearity has emerged as a powerful probe for revealing these properties. The Berry curvature dipole in nonmagnetic materials and the quantum metric dipole in antiferromagnets have been explored by studying the second-order nonlinear Hall effect. Although the quadrupole moment of the quantum geometric tensor is theoretically predicted to induce higher-order quantum nonlinearity, the quantum metric quadrupole remains experimentally unexplored. Here, we report the quantum metric quadrupole induced third-order nonlinear longitudinal electrical response in few-layer WTe2, persisting up to room temperature. Angle-resolved third-harmonic current-voltage characteristics are found consistent with the intrinsic crystal symmetry of WTe2. Through temperature variation and scaling analysis, we identify the quantum metric quadrupole as the physical origin of the observed third-order longitudinal nonlinearity. Additionally, we determine the angle dependence of the quantum metric quadrupole, establishing third-order nonlinearity as an efficient method for revealing the quantum metric structure.