Fermi-surface-induced lattice distortion in NbTe2 -: art. no. 195114

The origin of the monoclinic distortion and domain formation in the quasi-two-dimensional layer compound NbTe2 is investigated. Angle-resolved photoemission shows that the Fermi surface is pseudogapped over large portions of the Brillouin zone. Ab initio calculation of the electron and phonon band structure as well as the static RPA susceptibility lead us to conclude that Fermi surface nesting and electron-phonon coupling play a key role in the lowering of the crystal symmetry and in the formation of the charge density wave phase.