Charge-Order Discovered in High-T Superconductor

A recent publication by Johan Chang et al., reports a direct x-ray diffraction observation of charge density wave order in the high-temperature cuprate superconductor YBa2Cu3O6.54.

Ever since the experimental realization of high-magnetic field quantum oscillations in the underdoped cuprate YBa2Cu3O6.54 it was understood that this material has a Fermi surface in the conventional sense. The Fermi surface is however reconstructed with respect to the band structure expected from the lattice. Researchers have therefore been searching for broken lattice symmetries. Field-induced charge ordering breaking translational lattice symmetry was found using NMR in 2011. Direct x-ray diffraction evidence for charge ordering in YBa2Cu3O6.54 has now been discovered by Johan Chang and collaborators. This is an important step towards the understanding of the electronic structure of these materials.