Spontaneous symmetry breaking by charge stripes in the high pressure phase of superconducting La1.875Ba0.125CuO4.
In those cases where charge-stripe order has been observed in cuprates, the crystal structure is such that the average rotational symmetry of the CuO2 planes is reduced from fourfold to twofold. As a result, one could argue that the reduced lattice symmetry is essential to the existence of stripe order. We use pressure to restore the average fourfold symmetry in a single crystal of La1.875Ba0.125CuO4, and show by x-ray diffraction that charge-stripe order still occurs. Thus, electronically driven stripe order can spontaneously break the lattice symmetry.
Hücker
M
M
Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973-5000, USA.
Zimmermann
M V
MV
Debessai
M
M
Schilling
J S
JS
Tranquada
J M
JM
Gu
G D
GD