Visualizing the interplay of dual electronic nematicities in kagome superconductors

Yunmei Zhang; Jun Zhan; Ping Wu; Yun-Peng Huang; Qixiao Yuan; Hongyu Li; Zhuying Wang; Wanru Ma; Shuikang Yu; Kunming Zhang; Wanlin Cheng; Deshu Chen; Minrui Chen; Tao Wu; Ziji Xiang; Xianxin Wu; Zhenyu Wang; Xianhui Chen

arXiv · 2604.05506

Visualizing the interplay of dual electronic nematicities in kagome superconductors

Yunmei Zhang·Jun Zhan·Ping Wu·Yun-Peng Huang·Qixiao Yuan·Hongyu Li·Zhuying Wang·Wanru Ma·Shuikang Yu·Kunming Zhang·Wanlin Cheng·Deshu Chen·Minrui Chen·Tao Wu·Ziji Xiang·Xianxin Wu·Zhenyu Wang·Xianhui Chen

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Abstract

Kagome superconductor AV$_3$Sb$_5$ (A stands for K, Rb, and Cs) hosts a wealth of intertwined electronic orders driven by geometric frustration and electron correlations. Among them, the breaking of rotational and/or time-reversal symmetry, observed within the triple-$Q$ charge density wave (CDW) phase yet exhibiting a more complex temperature dependence, remains a central puzzle. Here, by using scanning tunneling microscopy to study the electronic structures of CsV$_3$Sb$_5$ as a function of temperature and Ti doping, we disentangle the interrelation between two distinct nematic order parameters, one associated with the CDW and the other manifested as $C_2$ distortion of the V-$d_{x^{2}-y^{2}}$ Fermi pockets without breaking transition symmetry. The latter persists to high doping levels and high temperatures where the long-range CDW is fully suppressed. Moreover, its nematic director is oriented in a lattice direction distinct from that of the CDW-induced nematicity at intermediate doping, and eventually aligns with the strong nematic CDW order in the pristine compound where the quasiparticles of vanadium orbitals become coherent below a lower characteristic temperature. These observations, combined with Ginzburg-Landau analysis, reveal a rich interplay between two nematic orders that can be assigned to distinct kagome-lattice orbitals. Our results shed new light on the enigmatic intertwined orders in this family and establish a rare material platform in which dual nematic orders coexist and couple to give rise to unusual correlated phenomena.

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Yunmei Zhang, Jun Zhan, Ping Wu, Yun-Peng Huang, Qixiao Yuan, Hongyu Li, Zhuying Wang, Wanru Ma, Shuikang Yu, Kunming Zhang, Wanlin Cheng, Deshu Chen, Minrui Chen, Tao Wu, Ziji Xiang, Xianxin Wu, Zhenyu Wang, Xianhui Chen. 2026-04-07. Visualizing the interplay of dual electronic nematicities in kagome superconductors. https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.05506

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