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Modulation of Electronic Liquid-Crystal Phases by Local Strain in Few-Layer FeSe Films.
Xuesong Gai1,2,3, Hao Xu1,2,3, Yi Yang1,2,3
1Beijing Key Laboratory of Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computing, Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences, Beijing 100193, China.
Nano Letters
|November 7, 2025
Summary
Researchers studied iron-based superconductors, finding that lattice distortions influence electronic states. Line defects in FeSe thin films stabilize electronic liquid-crystal states, offering nanoscale control over these phases.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Materials Science
- Superconductivity
Background:
- Symmetry-broken electronic phases in iron-based superconductors are linked to correlated phenomena.
- The relationship between lattice distortion and electronic states is of significant interest but poorly understood at the microscopic level.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the interplay between lattice structure and electronic smecticity in few-layer FeSe thin films.
- To understand how local strain, induced by defects, affects electronic ordering.
Main Methods:
- Comprehensive scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) was employed.
- Quantitative extraction of strain tensor components to map local strain.
- Analysis of smectic ordering relative to structural anisotropy.
Main Results:
- Local strain induced by dislocation lines and step-flow edges was visualized.
- Smectic ordering was found to be highly dependent on structural anisotropy.
- Smectic stripes align with the shorter Fe-Fe axis in the distorted orthorhombic lattice.
- Line defects were observed to stabilize larger domain blocks of smectic order.
Conclusions:
- A unified understanding of the coupling between the crystalline lattice and electronic liquid-crystal states in FeSe was established.
- The findings suggest a pathway for manipulating electronic phases at the nanoscale through control of lattice structure and defects.
