Instability toward Superconducting Stripe Phase in Altermagnets with Strong Rashba Spin-Orbit Coupling

TL;DR

This study numerically explores finite-momentum superconductivity in noncentrosymmetric altermagnets with strong Rashba spin-orbit coupling, revealing a reentrant stripe phase at low temperatures driven by Fermi surface deformation.

Contribution

It uncovers the emergence and mechanism of a stripe superconducting phase in altermagnets with strong spin-orbit coupling, expanding understanding of unconventional pairing states.

Findings

Stripe phase appears at low temperatures

Stripe phase shows reentrant behavior with altermagnetic splitting

Mechanism involves anisotropic Fermi surface deformation

Abstract

We numerically investigate finite-momentum superconductivity in noncentrosymmetric metallic altermagnets with $d$-wave spin-splitting and strong Rashba-type spin-orbit coupling. Focusing on a stripe phase in which Cooper pairs acquire multiple center-of-mass momenta, we construct phase diagrams that reveal phase boundaries between the stripe phase and a helical phase characterized by a single center-of-mass momentum. Our results show that the stripe phase emerges at low temperatures and exhibits a reentrant behavior as a function of the strength of the altermagnetic splitting. We further analyze the stripe phase within a linearized gap equation, and uncover the mechanism of the pairing formation unique to the stripe phase. This mechanism originates from the anisotropic deformation of the Fermi surfaces induced by the altermagnetic splitting, highlighting the intriguing interplay between the spin-orbit coupling and the altermagnets.