Evidence of nematic order and nodal superconducting gap along [110] direction in RbFe2As2

Xi Liu, Ran Tao, Mingqiang Ren, Wei Chen, Qi Yao, Thomas Wolf, Yajun Yan, Tong Zhang () and Donglai Feng ()
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Xi Liu: Fudan University
Ran Tao: Fudan University
Mingqiang Ren: Fudan University
Wei Chen: Fudan University
Qi Yao: Fudan University
Thomas Wolf: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Yajun Yan: Fudan University
Tong Zhang: Fudan University
Donglai Feng: Fudan University

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Unconventional superconductivity often intertwines with various forms of order, such as the nematic order which breaks the rotational symmetry of the lattice. Here we report a scanning tunneling microscopy study on RbFe2As2, a heavily hole-doped Fe-based superconductor (FeSC). We observe significant symmetry breaking in its electronic structure and magnetic vortex which differentiates the (π, π) and (π, -π) directions of the unfolded Brillouin zone. It is thus a novel nematic state, distinct from the nematicity of undoped/lightly-doped FeSCs which breaks the (π, 0)/(0, π) equivalence. Moreover, we observe a clear V-shaped superconducting gap. The gap is suppressed on surface Rb vacancies and step edges, and the suppression is particularly strong at the [110]-oriented edges. This is possibly due to a $${{d}}_{{{x}}^2 - {{y}}^2}$$ d x 2 - y 2 like pairing component with nodes along the [110] directions. Our results thus highlight the intimate connection between nematicity and superconducting pairing in iron-based superconductors.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-08962-z

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