@article{68f0ac322b92429eb70e81b43c0d05d1,
title = "Nanoscale phase-slip domain walls in the charge density wave state of the Weyl semimetal candidate NbTe4",
abstract = "The transition-metal tetrachalcogenides are a model system to explore the conjunction of correlated electronic states such as charge density waves (CDWs) with topological phases of matter. Understanding the connection between these phases requires a thorough understanding of the individual states, which for the case of the CDW in this system, is still missing. In this paper we combine phonon-structure calculations and scanning tunneling microscopy measurements of NbTe4 in order to provide a full characterization of the CDW state. We find that, at short range, the superstructure formed by the CDW is fully commensurate with the lattice parameters. Moreover, our data reveals the presence of phase-slip domain walls separating regions of commensurate CDWs in the nanoscale, indicating that the CDW in this compound is discommensurate at long range. Our results solve a long-standing discussion about the nature of the CDW in these materials and provide a strong basis for the study of the interplay between this state and other novel quantum electronic states.",
author = "Galvis, {J. A.} and A. Fang and D. Jim{\'e}nez-Guerrero and J. Rojas-Castillo and J. Casas and O. Herrera and Garcia-Castro, {A. C.} and E. Bousquet and Fisher, {I. R.} and A. Kapitulnik and P. Giraldo-Gallo",
note = "Funding Information: The authors thank C. A. Mera, L. Quiroga, F. Rodriguez, H. Suderow, I. Guillamon and E. Herrera for enlightening discussions. J.A.G., D.J-G., J.R-C., J.C., O.H., and P.G-G. are thankful for the support of the Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnolog{\'i}a e Innovaci{\'o}n de Colombia (Grants No. 120480863414 and No. 122585271058). P.G-G. and I.R.F. thank the APS International Travel Grant Award Program which enabled P.G-G. to visit Stanford University. P.G-G. thanks the L'Or{\'e}al-UNESCO for Women in Science International Rising Talents Programme, the School of Sciences, and the Vice Presidency of Research & Creation at Universidad de Los Andes. J.A.G., J.C., and O.H. appreciate the support of Cl{\'u}ster de Investigaci{\'o}n en Ciencias y Tecnolog{\'i}as Convergentes NBIC, Universidad Central. I.R.F., A.F., and A.K. were supported by the Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under Contract No. DE-AC02-76SF00515. This work used the DECI PRACE project OFFSPRING and the CECI facilities funded by F.R.S-FNRS (Grant No. 2.5020.1) and Tier-1 supercomputer of the F{\'e}d{\'e}ration Wallonie-Bruxelles funded by the Walloon Region (Grant No. 1117545). A.C.G.C. acknowledges the support of the GridUIS-2 experimental testbed, developed under the Universidad Industrial de Santander (SC3-UIS) High Performance and Scientific Computing Centre, with support from UIS Vicerrector{\'i}a de Investigaci{\'o}n y Extensi{\'o}n (VIE-UIS) and several UIS research groups, as well as other funding resources. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 American Physical Society.",
year = "2023",
month = jan,
day = "15",
doi = "10.1103/PhysRevB.107.045120",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "107",
journal = "Physical Review B",
issn = "2469-9950",
publisher = "American Physical Society",
number = "4",
}