Three-Dimensional Charge Density Wave and Surface Dependent Vortex Core States in a Kagome Superconductor CsV3Sb5

The transition-metal-based kagome metals provide a versatile platform for correlated topological phases hosting various electronic instabilities. While superconductivity is rare in layered kagome compounds, its interplay with nontrivial topology could offer an engaging space to realize exotic excitations of quasiparticles. Here, we use scanning tunneling microscopy to study a newly discovered Z(2) topological kagome metal CsV3Sb5 with a superconducting ground state. We observe charge modulation associated with the opening of an energy gap near the Fermi level. When across single-unit-cell surface step edges, the intensity of this charge modulation exhibits a pi-phase shift, suggesting a three-dimensional 2 x 2 x 2 charge density wave ordering. Interestingly, while conventional Caroli-de Gennes-Matricon bound states are observed inside the superconducting vortex on the Sb surfaces, a robust zero-bias conductance peak emerges that does not split in a large distance when moving away from the vortex center on the Cs 2 x 2 surfaces, resembling the Majorana bound states arising from the superconducting Dirac surface states in Bi2Te3/NbSe2 heterostructures. Our findings establish CsV3Sb5 as a promising candidate for realizing exotic excitations at the confluence of nontrivial lattice geometry, topology and multiple electronic orders.

Automated summary

Transition-metal-based kagome metals offer a versatile platform for correlated topological phases with various electronic instabilities. The study of a newly discovered Z(2) topological kagome metal CsV3Sb5 with a superconducting ground state reveals charge modulation associated with the opening of an energy gap near the Fermi level. The findings suggest CsV3Sb5 as a promising candidate for realizing exotic excitations at the intersection of nontrivial lattice geometry, topology, and multiple electronic orders.