Crystalline Order Yet Glass-Like Heat Transport Driven by Hidden Local Distortions as the Structural Origin of Ultralow Thermal Conductivity in AgErTe ₂

Given their rich chemical diversity and the interplay among the <i>p</i>-, <i>d</i>-, and <i>f</i>-orbitals of chalcogens, transition metals, and lanthanides, respectively, rare-earth transition-metal chalcogenides exhibit a wide variety of structural, magnetic, and transport phenomena. As a result, they form a particularly appealing platform for investigating structure-property relationships, emergent electronic and magnetic behaviors, and thermal transport. Here we investigate AgErTe₂ as a model system to understand phonon-glass behavior in ordered crystalline solids, which establishes the design principles for thermal barrier coatings and next-generation thermoelectrics. The local bonding asymmetry and lattice softness suppress the inherently low lattice thermal conductivity, resembling the characteristics of amorphous materials. This suppression is significantly influenced by local off-centering of Ag atoms, which breaks lattice periodicity while maintaining global crystallinity. The presence of antibonding states just below the Fermi level, arising from Ag 4<i>d</i> and Te 5<i>p</i> orbital interactions, leads to lattice softening and destabilizes ideal tetrahedral coordination, resulting in a pseudo Jahn-Teller distortion. Furthermore, the coexistence of weaker, more polarizable Ag-Te bonds and stronger Er-Te bonds creates a complex vibrational landscape enriched with low-frequency modes and enhanced phonon scattering. A pronounced disparity in interatomic force constants gives rise to highly localized, low-energy optical phonons linked to Ag rattling. These flat vibrational modes exhibit strong coupling with transverse acoustic phonons, resulting in ultrashort phonon lifetimes and mean free paths approaching interatomic distances. These features collectively enhance phonon scattering across a broad range of length and energy scales. This work offers a framework for engineering suppressed thermal conductivity in crystalline systems without the introduction of alloying elements.