A Charge Density Wave-like Transition in High Temperature Quenched $Bi_2Se_3$

Abstract

Hexagonally deformed Fermi surfaces and strong nesting, found in topological insulators (TIs) such as $Bi_2Se_3$ and $Bi_2Te_3$, have led to several predictions of the existence of Density Wave order in these systems. Recent evidence for strong Fermi surface nesting in superconducting $Cu-Bi_2Se_3$ and $Nb-Bi_2Se_3$ has further led to speculation about the importance of charge order in the context of unconventional superconductivity. Here, we report the first observation of a novel anomaly in $Bi_2Se_3$ at 140K, which may be associated with a Charge Density Wave (CDW)-like transition. This transition was identified from both structural and electronic measurements, where: a) a periodic lattice distortion at above room temperature was characterized as a diffuse charge order in $Bi_2Se_3$ between \vec{k} and \vec{k}\pm\mathrm{\Delta}\vec{k} from electron diffraction; and b) an opening of energy gap signatured with metal-to-insulator like transition at 140K was identified from resistivity vs temperature measurement. This is further corroborated by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies of the spin-lattice relaxation ( $\frac{1}{T_1}$) rate of the $^{209}Bi$ nucleus, which also displays a transition at 140K associated with an opening of an energy gap of ~8meV. Additionally, we also observe another anomaly in $\frac{1}{T_1}$ near 200K, which appears to display anisotropy with the direction of the applied magnetic field.