Bond competition and phase evolution on the IrTe2 surface

Qing Li, Wenzhi Lin, Jiaqiang Yan, Xin Chen, Anthony G. Gianfrancesco, David J. Singh, David Mandrus, Sergei V. Kalinin () and Minghu Pan ()
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Qing Li: Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Wenzhi Lin: Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Jiaqiang Yan: University of Tennessee
Xin Chen: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Anthony G. Gianfrancesco: UT/ORNL Bredesen Center, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
David J. Singh: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
David Mandrus: University of Tennessee
Sergei V. Kalinin: Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Minghu Pan: Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Nature Communications, 2014, vol. 5, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract Compounds with incommensurate structural modulations have been extensively studied in last several decades. However, the relationship between structurally incommensurate/commensurate phases and associated electronic states remains enigmatic. Here we report the coexisting of complex incommensurate structures and highly unusual electronic roughness on the surface of in situ cleaved IrTe2 by using scanning tunnelling microscopy/spectroscopy, corroborated with extensive density-functional theory calculations. This behaviour is traced to structural instability, which induces a structural transition from a trigonal to a triclinic lattice below transition temperature, giving rise to the formation of unidirectional structural modulations with distinct wavelengths, accompanied by the opening of a ‘pseudo’-gap in the surface layer. With further cooling the surface adopts a structure that reflects an ~6 × periodicity that is different from the bulk 5 × periodicity. Calculations show that the structure distortion is not associated with a charge density wave, but is rather associated with Te p-electron bonding.

Date: 2014
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms6358

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