Spatial inhomogeneity and planar symmetry breaking of the lattice incommensurate supermodulation in the high-temperature superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+y

Using scanning micro-x-ray diffraction we report a mixed real and reciprocal space visualization of the spatial heterogeneity of the lattice incommensurate supermodulation in a single crystal of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+y with T-c = 84 K. The mapping shows an amplitude distribution of the supermodulation with large lattice fluctuations at a microscale with similar to 50% amplitude variation. The angular distribution of the supermodulation amplitude in the a-b plane shows a lattice chiral symmetry, forming a left-handed oriented striped pattern. The spatial correlation of the supermodulation is well described by a compressed exponential with an exponent of 1.5 +/- 0.3 and a correlation length of similar to 50 mu m, showing intrinsic lattice disorder in high-temperature superconductors.