arXiv subjects

Dongliang Gong

Publications and source records attributed to Dongliang Gong.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Breaking the mutual exclusivity between metallicity and ferroelectricity in a non-polar covalent semiconductor via orbital selective doping

The mutual exclusion of ferroelectricity and metallic conductivity is a long-standing tenet because itinerant electrons screen long-range Coulomb forces that stabilize the bulk polar order. Here, we break this paradigm by heavily doping a non-polar covalent semiconductor of cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) with nitrogen. This introduces heavy electron doping, inducing metallicity and driving a structural transition from the non-polar F-43m to the polar R3m symmetry via the pseudo-Jahn-Teller effect. Remarkably, we provide direct, atomic-scale visualization of about 180° polarization reversal under an external voltage bias in a ferroelectric metal. The strongly directional character of antibonding orbitals occupied by conduction electrons prevents them from screening the local Si-C polarization, resulting in the coexistence of metallicity and ferroelectricity. Ferroelectric tunnel junctions demonstrate nonvolatile memory properties with a well-defined high-resistance state (HRS) and low-resistance state (LRS), an ultrahigh response speed (~50 ns), an ultralow operating voltage (1 V), an endurance exceeding 85927 cycles, and a projected retention time of 100 years. Our results provide a novel strategy for pioneering ferroelectricity in a metal, a new ferroelectric metal platform for exploring exotic properties, and a ferroelectric device with high performance that meets the requirements for low consumption and high-speed non-volatile devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Asymmetric stress engineering of dense dislocations in brittle superconductors for strong vortex pinning

Large lossless currents in high-temperature superconductors (HTS) critically rely on dense defects with suitable size and dimensionality to pin vortices, with dislocations being particularly effective due to their one-dimensional geometry to interact extensively with vortex lines. However, in non-metallic compounds such as HTS with rigid lattices, conventional deformation methods typically lead to catastrophic fracture rather than dislocation-mediated plasticity, making it a persistent challenge to introduce dislocations at high density. Here, we propose an asymmetric stress field strategy using extrusion to directly nucleate a high-density of dislocations in HTS by activating shear-driven lattice slip and twisting under superimposed hydrostatic compression. As demonstrated in iron-based superconductors (IBS), atomic displacements of nearly one angstrom trigger the formation of tilted dislocation lines with a density approaching that of metals. With further structural refinement, these dislocations serve as strong pinning centers that lead to a fivefold enhancement in the current-carrying capacity of IBS at 33 T, along with low anisotropy and a large irreversibility field. This work not only establishes a scalable route to engineer pinning landscapes in HTS, but also offers a generalizable framework for manipulating dislocation structures in rigid crystalline systems.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Large asymmetric anomalous Nernst effect in the antiferromagnet SrIr$_{0.8}$Sn$_{0.2}$O$_3$

A large anomalous Nernst effect is essential for thermoelectric energy harvesting in the transverse geometry without external magnetic field. It is often connected with anomalous Hall effect, especially when electronic Berry curvature is believed to be the driving force. This approach implicitly assumes the same symmetry for the Nernst and Hall coefficients, which is however not necessarily true. Here we report a large anomalous Nernst effect in antiferromagnetic SrIr$_{0.8}$Sn$_{0.2}$O$_3$ that defies the antisymmetric constraint on the anomalous Hall effect imposed by the Onsager reciprocal relation. The observed spontaneous Nernst thermopower quickly reaches the sub-$μ$V/K level below the Néel transition around 250 K, which is comparable with many topological antiferromagnetic semimetals and far excels other magnetic oxides. Our analysis indicates that the coexistence of significant symmetric and antisymmetric contributions plays a key role, pointing to the importance of extracting both contributions and a new pathway to enhanced anomalous Nernst effect for transverse thermoelectrics

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

Anomalous Proximitized Transport in Metal/Quantum Magnet Heterostructure $\rm{Bi_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}/Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7}}$

Fluctuations of quantum spins play a crucial role in the emergence of exotic magnetic phases and excitations. The lack of the charge degree of freedom in insulating quantum magnets, however, precludes such fluctuations from mediating electronic transport. Here we show that the quantum fluctuations of a localized frustrated magnet induce strong proximitized charge transport of the conduction electrons in a synthetic heterostructure comprising an epitaxial $\rm{Bi_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}}$ ultrathin film on the single crystal of $\rm{Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7}}$. The proximity effects are evidenced by the scaling behavior of the $\rm{Bi_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}}$ resistance in correspondance with the dynamic scaling of the dynamic spin correlation function of $\rm{Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7}}$, which is a result of quantum fluctuations near a multi-phase quantum critical point. The proximitized transport in $\rm{Bi_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}}$ can be effectively tuned by magnetic field through suppressing the quantum spin fluctuations as well as inducing transitions via magnetic anisotropy in $\rm{Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7}}$. Our work establishes a new pathway for harnessing quantum spin fluctuations in magnetic insulators with electric transport, offering exciting prospects for potential applications in the realm of quantum spintronics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2022

Spin excitations in the kagome-lattice metallic antiferromagnet Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn

Kagome-lattice materials have attracted tremendous interest due to the broad prospect for seeking superconductivity, quantum spin liquid states, and topological electronic structures. Among them, the transition-metal kagome lattices are high-profile objects for the combination of topological properties, rich magnetism, and multiple-orbital physics. Here we report an inelastic neutron scattering study on the spin dynamics of a kagome-lattice antiferromagnetic metal Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn. Although the magnetic excitations can be observed up to $\sim$250 meV, well-defined spin waves are only identified below $\sim$90 meV and can be modeled using Heisenberg exchange with ferromagnetic in-plane nearest-neighbor coupling $J_1$, in-plane next-nearest-neighbor coupling $J_2$, and antiferromagnetic (AFM) interlayer coupling $J_c$ under linear spin-wave theory. Above $\sim$90 meV, the spin waves enter the itinerant Stoner continuum and become highly damped particle-hole excitations. At the K point of the Brillouin zone, we reveal a possible band crossing of the spin wave, which indicates a potential Dirac magnon. Our results uncover the evolution of the spin excitations from the planar AFM state to the axial AFM state in Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn, solve the magnetic Hamiltonian for both states, and confirm the significant influence of the itinerant magnetism on the spin excitations.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2022

Tracking the nematicity in cuprate superconductors: a resistivity study under uniaxial pressure

Overshadowing the superconducting dome in hole-doped cuprates, the pseudogap state is still one of the mysteries that no consensus can be achieved. It has been suggested that the rotational symmetry is broken in this state and may result in a nematic phase transition, whose temperature seems to coincide with the onset temperature of the pseudogap state $T^*$ around optimal doping level, raising the question whether the pseudogap results from the establishment of the nematic order. Here we report results of resistivity measurements under uniaxial pressure on several hole-doped cuprates, where the normalized slope of the elastoresistivity $ζ$ can be obtained as illustrated in iron-based superconductors. The temperature dependence of $ζ$ along particular lattice axis exhibits kink feature at $T_{k}$ and shows Curie-Weiss-like behavior above it, which may suggest a spontaneous nematic transition. While $T_{k}$ seems to be the same as $T^*$ around the optimal doping and in the overdoped region, they become very different in underdoped La$_{2-x}$Sr$_{x}$CuO$_4$. Our results suggest that the nematic order, if indeed existing, is an electronic phase within the pseudogap state.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2022

In-plane anisotropic response to the uniaxial pressure in the hidden order state of URu$_2$Si$_2$

We studied the uniaxial-pressure dependence of the resistivity for URu$_{2-x}$Fe$_x$Si$_2$ samples with $x$ = 0 and 0.2, which host a hidden order (HO) and a large-moment antiferromagnetic (LMAFM) phase, respectively. For both samples, the elastoresistivity $ζ$ shows a seemingly divergent behavior above the transition temperature $T_0$ and a quick decrease below it. We found that the temperature dependence of $ζ$ for both samples can be well described by assuming the uniaxial pressure effect on the gap or certain energy scale except for $ζ_{(110)}$ of the $x$ = 0 sample, which exhibits a non-zero residual value at 0 K. We show that this provides a qualitative difference between the HO and LMAFM phases. Our results suggest that there is an in-plane anisotropic response to the uniaxial pressure that only exists in the hidden order state without necessarily breaking the rotational lattice symmetry.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2022

Nematic fluctuations in the non-superconducting iron pnictide BaFe$_{1.9-x}$Ni$_{0.1}$Cr$_{x}$As$_{2}$

The main driven force of the electronic nematic phase in iron-based superconductors is still under debate. Here, we report a comprehensive study on the nematic fluctuations in a non-superconducting iron pnictide system BaFe$_{1.9-x}$Ni$_{0.1}$Cr$_{x}$As$_{2}$ by electronic transport, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) measurements. Previous neutron diffraction and transport measurements suggested that the collinear antiferromagnetism persists to $x=0.8$, with similar Néel temperature $T_N$ and structural transition temperature $T_s$ around 32 K, but the charge carriers change from electron type to hole type around $x=$ 0.5. In this study, we have found that the in-plane resistivity anisotropy also highly depends on the Cr dopings and the type of charge carriers. While ARPES measurements suggest possibly weak orbital anisotropy onset near $T_s$ for both $x=0.05$ and $x=0.5$ compounds, INS experiments reveal clearly different onset temperatures of low-energy spin excitation anisotropy, which is likely related to the energy scale of spin nematicity. These results suggest that the interplay between the local spins on Fe atoms and the itinerant electrons on Fermi surfaces is crucial to the nematic fluctuations of iron pnictides, where the orbital degree of freedom may behave differently from the spin degree of freedom, and the transport properties are intimately related to the spin dynamics.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2022

Reconciling monolayer and bilayer $J_{\rm eff} = 1/2$ square lattices in hybrid oxide superlattice

The number of atomic layers confined in a two-dimensional structure is crucial for the electronic and magnetic properties. Single-layer and bilayer $J_{\rm eff} = 1/2$ square lattices are well-known examples where the presence of the extra layer turns the XY-anisotropy to the $c$-axis anisotropy. We report on experimental realization of a hybrid SrIrO$_3$/SrTiO$_3$ superlattice that integrates monolayer and bilayer square lattices in one layered structure. By synchrotron x-ray diffraction, resonant x-ray magnetic scattering, magnetization, and resistivity measurements, we found that the hybrid superlattice exhibits properties that are distinct from both the single-layer and bilayer systems and cannot be explained by a simple addition of them. In particular, the entire hybrid superlattice orders simultaneously through a single antiferromagnetic transition at temperatures similar to the bilayer system but with all the $J_{\rm eff} = 1/2$ moments mainly pointing in the $ab$-plane similar to the single-layer system. The results show that bringing monolayer and bilayer with orthogonal properties in proximity to each other in a hybrid superlattice structure is a powerful way to stabilize a unique state not obtainable in a uniform structure.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Nonlinear uniaxial pressure dependence of $T_c$ in iron-based superconductors

We have systematically studied the effects of in-plane uniaxial pressure $p$ on the superconducting transition temperature $T_c$ in many iron-based superconductors. The change of $T_c$ with $p$ is composed of linear and nonlinear components. The latter can be described as a quadratic term plus a much smaller fourth-order term. In contrast to the linear component, the nonlinear $p$ dependence of $T_c$ displays a pronounced in-plane anisotropy, which is similar to the anisotropic response of the resistivity to $p$. As a result, it can be attributed to the coupling between the superconducting and nematic orders, in accordance with the expectations of a phenomenological Landau theory. Our results provide direct evidences for the interplay between nematic fluctuations and superconductivity, which may be a common behavior in iron-based superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2019

The effect of non-superconducting dopants (Mn, V, Cr and Cu) on the nematic fluctuations in iron-based superconductors

We have systematically studied the nematic susceptibility in non-superconducting Ba(Fe$_{1-x}$TM$_{x}$)$_2$As$_2$ (TM = Cr, Mn, V and Cu) by measuring the uniaxial pressure dependence of the resistivity along the Fe-As-Fe direction. The nematic susceptibilities in all samples show the Curie-Weiss-like behavior at high temperatures, where the nematic Curie constant $A_n$ can be derived, similar to the Curie constant in a paramagnetism. While all these dopants do not introduce superconductivity in BaFe$_2$As$_2$, their effects on nematic fluctuations are different. In Mn, Cr and V doped samples, $|A_n|$ decreases significantly with the increasing doping level. On the other hand, $|A_n|$ increases dramatically with Cu doping, similar to the superconducting Ni-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$. However, the nematic susceptibility is suppressed at low temperatures for $x$ larger than $0.04$, which may be related to the short-range antiferromagnetic order that survives up to very high doping level. Doping Mn, Cr and Cu into the optimally-doped superconducting BaFe$_2$(As$_{0.69}$P$_{0.31}$)$_2$ also strongly reduces $|A_n|$. Compared with those systems that clearly exhibit superconductivity, such as Ni, K or P doped samples, our results suggest a strong connection between the nematic and spin degrees of freedom. Moreover, the reason of the suppression of superconductivity by dopants such as Cr, Mn, V and Cu may be correlated with the suppression of nematic fluctuations.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2019

Doping Dependence of the Second Magnetization Peak, Critical Current Density and Pinning Mechanism in BaFe$_{2-x}$Ni$_x$As$_2$ Pnictide Superconductors

A series of high quality BaFe$_{2-x}$Ni$_x$As$_2$ pnictide superconductors were studied using magnetic relaxation and isothermal magnetic measurements in order to study the second magnetization peak (SMP) and critical current behaviour in Ni-doped 122 family. The temperature dependence of the magnetic relaxation rate suggests a pinning crossover, whereas, it's magnetic field dependence hints a vortex-lattice structural phase-transition. The activation energy ($U$) estimated using the magnetic relaxation data was analyzed in detail for slightly-underdoped, slightly-overdoped and an overdoped samples, using Maley's method and collective creep theory. Our results confirm that the SMP in these samples is due to the collective (elastic) to plastic creep crossover as has been observed for the other members of 122-family. In addition, we also investigated the doping dependence of the critical current density ($J_c$) and the vortex-pinning behaviour in these compounds. The observed $J_c$ is higher than the threshold limit (10$^5$ A/cm$^2$) considered for the technological potential and even greater than 1 MA/cm$^2$ for slightly underdoped Ni-content, x = 0.092 sample. The pinning characteristics were analyzed in terms of the models developed by Dew-Hughes and Griessen $et$ $al$, which suggest the dominant role of $δl$-type pinning.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2019

Structure-Property Relationship in Layered BaMn2Sb2 and Ba2Mn3Sb2O2

Layered transition-metal compounds have received great attention owing to their novel physical properties. Here, we present the structural, electronic, thermal, and magnetic properties of BaMn2Sb2 and Ba2Mn3Sb2O2 single crystals, both with the layered structure analogous to high-temperature superconductors. While the Mn moment in the MnSb4 tetrahedral environment forms G-type antiferromagnetic (AFM) ordering in both BaMn2Sb2 (TN1~443 K) and Ba2Mn3Sb2O2 (TN1~314 K), a short-range AFM order is found in the intercalated MnO2 layer at a much lower temperature (TN2~60 K) in Ba2Mn3Sb2O2. The directions of the ordered moments in these two magnetic sub-lattices of Ba2Mn3Sb2O2 are perpendicular to each other, even though the system is electrically conductive. This indicates that the large magnetic moments in these compounds are highly localized, leading to negligible coupling between MnSb4 and MnO2 layers in Ba2Mn3Sb2O2. These findings provide an insight into the structure-magnetism-based design principle for new superconductors.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2018

c-axis pressure induced antiferromagnetic order in optimally P-doped BaFe2(As0.70P0.30)2 superconductor

Superconductivity in BaFe2(As1-xPx)2 iron pnictides emerges when its in-plane two-dimensional (2D) orthorhombic lattice distortion associated with nematic phase at Ts and three-dimensional (3D) collinear antiferromagnetic (AF) order at TN (Ts = TN) are gradually suppressed with increasing x, reaching optimal superconductivity around x = 0.30 with Tc $\approx$ 30 K. Here we show that a moderate uniaxial pressure along the c-axis in BaFe2(As0.70P0.30)2 spontaneously induces a 3D collinear AF order with TN = Ts > 30 K, while only slightly suppresses Tc. Although a ~ 400 MPa pressure compresses the c-axis lattice while expanding the in-plane lattice and increasing the nearest-neighbor Fe-Fe distance, it barely changes the average iron-pnictogen height in BaFe2(As0.70P0.30)2. Therefore, the pressure- induced AF order must arise from a strong in-plane magnetoelastic coupling, suggesting that the 2D nematic phase is a competing state with superconductivity.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2018

Doping effects of Cr on the physical properties of BaFe$_{1.9-x}$Ni$_{0.1}$Cr$_{x}$As$_{2}$

We present a systematic study on the heavily Cr doped iron pnictides BaFe$_{1.9-x}$Ni$_{0.1}$Cr$_{x}$As$_{2}$ by using elastic neutron scattering, high-resolution synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD), resistivity and Hall transport measurements. When the Cr concentration increases from $x=$ 0 to 0.8, neutron diffraction experiments suggest that the collinear antiferromagnetism persists in the whole doping range, where the Néel temperature $T_N$ coincides with the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic structural transition temperature $T_s$, and both of them keeps around 35 K. The magnetic ordered moment, on the other hand, increases within increasing $x$ until $x=$ 0.5, and then decreases with further increasing $x$. Detailed refinement of the powder XRD patterns reveals that the Cr substitutions actually stretch the FeAs$_4$ tetrahedron along the $c-$axis and lift the arsenic height away Fe-Fe plane. Transport results indicate that the charge carriers become more localized upon Cr doping, then changes from electron-type to hole-type around $x=$ 0.5. Our results suggest that the ordered moment and the ordered temperature of static magnetism in iron pnictides can be decoupled and tuned separately by chemical doping.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2018

Odd and even modes of neutron spin resonance in the bilayer iron-based superconductor CaKFe$_4$As$_4$

We report an inelastic neutron scattering study on the spin resonance in the bilayer iron-based superconductor CaKFe$_4$As$_4$. In contrast to its quasi-two-dimensional electron structure, three strongly $L$-dependent modes of spin resonance are found below $T_c=35$ K. The mode energies are below and linearly scale with the total superconducting gaps summed on the nesting hole and electron pockets, essentially in agreement with the results in cuprate and heavy fermion superconductors. This observation supports the sign-reversed Cooper pairing mechanism under multiple pairing channels and resolves the long-standing puzzles concerning the broadening and dispersive spin resonance peak in iron pnictides. More importantly, the triple resonant modes can be classified into odd and even symmetries with respect to the distance of Fe-Fe planes within the Fe-As bilayer unit. Thus, our results closely resemble those in the bilayer cuprates with nondegenerate spin excitations, suggesting that these two high-$T_c$ superconducting families share a common nature.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2018

Neutron spin resonance in the 112-type iron-based superconductor

We use inelastic neutron scattering to study the low-energy spin excitations of 112-type iron pnictide Ca$_{0.82}$La$_{0.18}$Fe$_{0.96}$Ni$_{0.04}$As$_{2}$ with bulk superconductivity below $T_c=22$ K. A two-dimensional spin resonance mode is found around $E=$ 11 meV, where the resonance energy is almost temperature independent and linearly scales with $T_c$ along with other iron-based superconductors. Polarized neutron analysis reveals the resonance is nearly isotropic in spin space without any $L$ modulations. Due to the unique monoclinic structure with additional zigzag arsenic chains, the As $4p$ orbitals contribute to a three-dimensional hole pocket around $Γ$ point and an extra electron pocket at $X$ point. Our results suggest that the energy and momentum distribution of spin resonance does not directly response to the $k_z$ dependence of fermiology, and the spin resonance intrinsically is a spin-1 mode from singlet-triplet excitations of the Cooper pairs in the case of weak spin-orbital coupling.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2018

Protonation induced high-Tc phases in iron-based superconductors evidenced by NMR and magnetization measurements

Chemical substitution during growth is a well-established method to manipulate electronic states of quantum materials, and leads to rich spectra of phase diagrams in cuprate and iron-based superconductors. Here we report a novel and generic strategy to achieve nonvolatile electron doping in series of (i.e. 11 and 122 structures) Fe-based superconductors by ionic liquid gating induced protonation at room temperature. Accumulation of protons in bulk compounds induces superconductivity in the parent compounds, and enhances the Tc largely in some superconducting ones. Furthermore, the existence of proton in the lattice enables the first proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) study to probe directly superconductivity. Using FeS as a model system, our NMR study reveals an emergent high-Tc phase with no coherence peak which is hard to measure by NMR with other isotopes. This novel electric-field-induced proton evolution opens up an avenue for manipulation of competing electronic states (e.g. Mott insulators), and may provide an innovative way for a broad perspective of NMR measurements with greatly enhanced detecting resolution.

cond-mat.supr-con↗