Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 6, 2026
09:06
Visualizing Uniaxial-strain Manipulation of Antiferromagnetic Domains in Fe1+YTe Using a Spin-polarized Scanning Tunneling Microscope
Published on: March 24, 2019
Versatile electronic phases enabled by intertwined multiple frustrations in an antiferromagnetic two-dimensional
Y Fujisawa1,2, P Wu1,3, T Nakamura1
1Quantum Materials Science Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), Okinawa, Japan.
Nature Communications
|July 23, 2026
Summary
Researchers discovered tunable antiferromagnetic electronic phases in CeTe3, moving beyond conventional charge density waves. These novel states in van der Waals materials offer new avenues for quantum matter research.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Materials Science
- Quantum Matter
Background:
- Van der Waals materials are crucial for quantum matter research following graphene's discovery.
- Exploring strongly interacting electronic phases beyond graphene remains a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate novel electronic phases in the van der Waals semimetal CeTe3.
- To characterize competing charge-ordered states and their tunability.
Main Methods:
- Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy (STM/STS).
- Quasiparticle-interference imaging.
- Application of in-plane magnetic fields.
Main Results:
- Discovery of three distinct multiple-q antiferromagnetic charge-ordered states (stripe- and checkerboard-type).
- Identification of field-tunable states with specific propagation vectors, controlled by ~1.5 T magnetic fields.
- Observation of three nesting channels, Fermi-surface reconstructions, and broad electronic reconstruction beyond Kondo-coupling.
Conclusions:
- CeTe3 serves as a platform for tunable nanoscale antiferromagnetic electronic phases.
- These phases exhibit intertwined correlations, symmetry-breaking, and nontrivial topology.
- The findings advance the understanding of complex electronic states in van der Waals materials.
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