Materials and Models for Coexisting Metallic Conductivity and Broken Inversion Symmetry
Abstract
Metallic conductivity and broken inversion symmetry were long thought to be contraindicated properties, under the assumption that long-range Coulombic interactions (screened by free charge carriers) were necessary for coordinated polar displacements. Within the past decade, the discovery of polar metals has prompted a rethinking of the relationship between metallicity and inversion-lifting distortions, spurring new research on diverse materials. Recent work has revealed that polarmetals are capable of hosting a wide variety of rare and desirable properties, ranging from unconventional superconductivity to enhanced thermopower. Nonetheless, there remains ambiguity regarding the fundamental relationship between the distortion mechanism and the electronic structure, due in part to the many different approaches to uniting the two orders. Thus, despite a large number of so-called ferroelectric, ferroelectric-like, and polar metals, band metals that exhibit an inversion-breaking distortion are still rare.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 08, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1226127
Entities
People
- Daniel Hickox-Young
Organizations
- Northwestern University