Evidence for Topological Defects in a Photoinduced Charge Density Wave Transition

Invited

Abstract

Upon excitation with an intense laser pulse, a symmetry-broken ground state can undergo a non-equilibrium phase transition through pathways different from those in thermal equilibrium. The mechanism underlying these photoinduced phase transitions has long been researched in the study of condensed matter systems, but many details in this ultrafast, non-adiabatic regime still remain to be clarified. To this end, we investigate the light-induced melting of a unidirectional charge density wave (CDW) in LaTe3. Using a suite of time-resolved probes, we independently track the amplitude and phase dynamics of the CDW. We find that a fast (approximately 1 picosecond) recovery of the CDW amplitude is followed by a slower re-establishment of phase coherence. This longer timescale is dictated by the presence of topological defects: long-range order is inhibited and is only restored when the defects annihilate.

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Presenters

  • Anshul Kogar

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Authors

  • Anshul Kogar

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Alfred Zong

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Ya-Qing Bie

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Timm Rohwer

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Changmin Lee

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Edoardo Baldini

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Emre Ergecen

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Mehmet B Yilmaz

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Byron Kendall Freelon

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  • Edbert Jarvis Sie

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford University

  • Hengyun Zhou

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Department of Physics, Harvard University

  • Joshua Straquadine

    Physics, Stanford University, Stanford University

  • Philip Walmsley

    Physics, Stanford University, Stanford University

  • Pavel E Dolgirev

    Physics, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology

  • Alexander Rozhkov

    Physics, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology

  • Ian R Fisher

    Physics, Stanford University, Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford University, Pulsed Field Faclity, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

  • Pablo Jarillo-Herrero

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, Massachusetts Inst of Tech-MIT, Physics, MIT

  • Boris V. Fine

    Physics, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Center for Photonics and Quantum Materials, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology

  • Nuh Gedik

    Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Inst of Tech-MIT, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology