Structure of Bi₂Rh₃Se₂ above and below charge density wave transition determined by Bi Lα and Lγ X-ray fluorescence...

The local structure of a two-dimensional layered material, Bi₂Rh₃Se₂, in which superconducting (SC) and charge-density wave (CDW) states coexist, was investigated using Bi Lα and Lγ X-ray fluorescence holography (XFH). The crystal of Bi₂Rh₃Se₂ adopts a monoclinic lattice with a space group of C2/m (No. 12) at room temperature; however, the structure below the CDW transition (∼240 K) is still unclear because of the difficulty in analyzing single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Therefore, information on the crystal structure below 240 K is significant to fully investigate the relationship between the SC and CDW states. Precisely, the value of β has not been definitely determined, i.e., β ∼ 90° or ∼134° is still unclear. Therefore, the crystal structure above 240 K is still under discussion. In this study, we attempted to determine the crystal structure at 300 and 200 K by comparing the atomic images reconstructed from Bi Lγ holograms with images simulated based on crystal structure models. A Bi Lα hologram was also exploited to determine suitable atomic locations by comparison with the simulated ones. The atomic image simulated with the crystal structure of Bi₂Rh₃S₂ below the structural phase transition temperature reproduced well the experimental atomic image at 200 K. Specifically, the line profiles of the reconstructed images at 300 and 200 K, which exactly reflect the intensity of the atomic spots, clearly indicate the structural variation above and below the CDW transition temperature, i.e., the supercell structure is suggested as the atomic location for Bi₂Rh₃Se₂ below the CDW transition temperature.