Structural and electrical transport properties of charge density wave material LaAgSb_(2)under high pressure

Layered lanthanum silver antimonide LaAgSb_(2)exhibits both charge density wave(CDW)order and Dirac-cone-like band structure at ambient pressure.Here,we systematically investigate the pressure evolution of structural and electronic properties of LaAgSb_(2)single crystal.We show that the CDW order is destabilized under compression,as evidenced by the gradual suppression of magnetoresistance.At P_(C)~22 GPa,synchrotron x-ray diffraction and Raman scattering measurements reveal a structural modification at room-temperature.Meanwhile,the sign change of the Hall coefficient is observed at 5 K.Our results demonstrate the tunability of CDW order in the pressurized LaAgSb_(2)single crystal,which can be helpful for its potential applications in the next-generation devices.

Stability of the topological quantum critical point between multi-Weyl semimetal and band insulator

One could tune a topological double-Weyl semimetal or a topological triple-Weyl semimetal to become a topologically trivial insulator by opening a band gap.This kind of quantum phase transition is characterized by the change of certain topological invariant.A new gapless semimetallic state emerges at each topological quantum critical point.Here we perform a renormalization group analysis to investigate the stability of such critical points against perturbations induced by random scalar potential and random vector potential.We find that the quantum critical point between double-Weyl semimetal and band insulator is unstable and can be easily turned into a compressible diffusive metal by any type of weak disorder.The quantum critical point between triple-Weyl semimetal and band insulator flows to a stable strong-coupling fixed point if the system contains a random vector potential merely along the z-axis,but becomes a compressible diffusive metal when other types of disorders exist.

Field-induced anisotropic magnetic phase transitions and tricritical phenomena in GdCr_(6)Ge_(6)

The interaction between complex magnetic structures and non-trivial band structures in ternary rare-earth GdCr_(6)Ge_(6) induces exotic and abundant electro-magnetic phenomena.In this work,we perform a systematical investigation on critical behaviors and magnetic properties of the single-crystal GdCr_(6)Ge_(6).The temperature,field,and angle dependence of magnetization unveils strong magnetic anisotropy along the c-axis and isotropic characteristic in the ab-plane.Critical exponentsβ=0.252(1),γ=0.905(9),δ=4.606(3)for H//ab,andβ=0.281(3),γ=0.991(8),δ=4.541(5)for H//c are obtained by the modified Arrott plot method(MAP)and critical isotherm(CI)analysis.The determined exponents for both directions are consistent with the theoretical prediction of a tricritical mean-field model.Based on detailed magnetization measurements and universality scaling,comprehensive magnetic phase diagrams of GdCr6Ge6for H//ab and H//c are constructed,which reveal that the external field induces a ferromagnetic(FM)transition for H//ab while a ferrimagnetic(FIM)one for H//c.Two tricritical points are determined for H//ab(11.2 K,266.3 Oe)and H//c(11.3 K,3.3 kOe)on the phase diagrams,respectively.The field-induced anisotropic magnetic configurations and multiple phases are clarified,where the moments of Gd and Cr form FM coupling for H//ab while FIM one for H//c via the interaction between Gd and Cr sublattices.

Pressure engineering of intertwined phase transitions in lanthanide monopnictide NdSb

Coexistence of non-trivial band topology and intrinsic magnetic order not only leads to emergent phenomena but also allows for the tunability of the exotic properties from different degrees of freedom. By performing transport measurements at synergetic extreme conditions, here we report on pressure engineering of intertwined structural, magnetic, and topological phase transitions in an antiferromagnetic Dirac semimetal NdSb. We show that the original antiferromagnetic state is strengthened in the lowpressure region while destabilized upon further compression close to the critical pressure where a structural transition from Fm-3m phase to P4/mmm phase takes place at P~18 GPa, forming a yurt-shaped evolution in response to magnetic field,pressure and temperature. Concomitant with the structural transition, NdSb simultaneously carries on a magnetic transition to the ferromagnetic state. Moreover, theoretical calculations unravel that the ferromagnetic tetragonal phase presents nontrivial features of Weyl fermions. These findings offer new important insight into the microscopic interplay among lattice, spin, and relativistic fermions in lanthanide monopnictides.