title: Scanning-tunneling microscope imaging of single-electron solitons in a material with incommensurate charge-density waves.
abstract: We report on scanning-tunneling microscopy experiments in a charge-density wave (CDW) system allowing visually capturing and studying in detail the individual solitons corresponding to the self-trapping of just one electron. This "Amplitude Soliton" is marked by vanishing of the CDW amplitude and by the π shift of its phase. It might be the realization of the spinon--the long-sought particle (along with the holon) in the study of science of strongly correlated electronic systems. As a distinct feature we also observe one-dimensional Friedel oscillations superimposed on the CDW which develop independently of solitons.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Modèles Statistiques, CNRS and University Paris-Sud, bat. 100, 91405 Orsay, France.
authors.forename: Serguei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Brazovskii
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brun
authors.forename: Zhao-Zhong
authors.initials: ZZ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Monceau