Kagome metals, known for their distinctive two-dimensional lattices formed by corner-sharing triangles, have drawn significant attention in condensed matter physics due to their unique electronic properties.
Recent theoretical predictions suggest that these materials can host compact molecular orbitals – standing-wave patterns of electrons – that may enable unconventional superconductivity and unusual magnetic orders when activated by electron correlation effects. In most kagome materials, these flat electronic bands lie too far from active energy levels to meaningfully influence behavior.
However, in CsCr₃Sb₅, researchers have found that the flat bands are actively involved, directly affecting the material’s superconducting and magnetic properties, making it a rare platform for studying quantum phenomena.
A recent study, led by Pengcheng Dai, Ming Yi, and Qimiao Si of Rice University’s Department of Physics and Astronomy and Smalley-Curl Institute, along with Di-Jing Huang from Taiwan’s National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center, has been focusing on the chromium-based kagome metal CsCr₃Sb₅.
Published in Nature Communications, the research examines how this material, which exhibits superconductivity under pressure, hosts active flat electronic bands that directly influence its quantum properties, offering new insights into the design of unconventional superconductors and other advanced quantum materials.
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