Distinct uniaxial stress and pressure fingerprint of superconductivity in the 3D kagome lattice compound CeRu2

The exploration of tunable superconductivity in strongly correlated electron systems is a central pursuit in condensed matter physics, with implications for both fundamental understanding and potential applications. The Laves phase CeRu2, a pyrochlore compound, exhibits a three-dimensional (3D) kagome lattice type geometry giving rise to flat bands and degenerate Dirac points, where band structure features intertwine with strong multi-orbital interaction effects deriving from its correlated electronic structure. Here, we combine muon spin rotation (μSR), uniaxial in-plane stress, and hydrostatic pressure to probe the superconducting state of CeRu2. Uniaxial stress up to 0.22 GPa induces a dome-shaped evolution of the critical temperature Tc, with an initial plateau, successively followed by enhancement and suppression without any structural phase transition. Stress is further found to drive a crossover from anisotropic to isotropic s-wave pairing. In contrast, hydrostatic pressure up to 1.9 GPa leaves Tc largely unchanged but alters the superfluid density from exponential to linear behavior at low temperatures, indicative of nodal superconductivity under hydrostatic pressure. These findings identify CeRu2 as a prime platform for multifold tuning of superconductivity in a 3D correlated material. The pyrochlore compound CeRu2 hosts a three-dimensional kagome lattice with flat bands and it’s possible to tune superconductivity in the system under various conditions. Here, by combining muon spin rotation with uniaxial stress and hydrostatic pressure, the authors observe distinct and complementary tuning pathways, including a dome-shaped stress-induce devolution of Tc with a crossover from anisotropic to isotropic s-wave pairing, and a pressure-driven change from nodeless to nodal superconductivity.

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Journal
Communications Physics
Published
2026-02-26
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-026-02553-3
Primary Topic
Rare-earth and actinide compounds
Type
article
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article

Distinct uniaxial stress and pressure fingerprint of superconductivity in the 3D kagome lattice compound CeRu2

O. Gerguri, V. Grinenko, D. Das, J. -X. Yin et al.
Communications Physics
Rare-earth and actinide compounds
article

Distinct uniaxial stress and pressure fingerprint of superconductivity in the 3D kagome lattice compound CeRu2

O. Gerguri, V. Grinenko, D. Das, J. -X. Yin, V. Sazgari, H. B. Liu, R. Sarkar, Z. Guguchia, J. F. Chang, R. Khasanov, P. Král, R. Thomale, S. S. Islam, H. Luetkens, C. Mielke III, J. N. Graham, D. Gawryluk, Y. G. Shi, H. H. Klauss, T. Shiroka
article en

Abstract

The exploration of tunable superconductivity in strongly correlated electron systems is a central pursuit in condensed matter physics, with implications for both fundamental understanding and potential applications. The Laves phase CeRu2, a pyrochlore compound, exhibits a three-dimensional (3D) kagome lattice type geometry giving rise to flat bands and degenerate Dirac points, where band structure features intertwine with strong multi-orbital interaction effects deriving from its correlated electronic structure. Here, we combine muon spin rotation (μSR), uniaxial in-plane stress, and hydrostatic pressure to probe the superconducting state of CeRu2. Uniaxial stress up to 0.22 GPa induces a dome-shaped evolution of the critical temperature Tc, with an initial plateau, successively followed by enhancement and suppression without any structural phase transition. Stress is further found to drive a crossover from anisotropic to isotropic s-wave pairing. In contrast, hydrostatic pressure up to 1.9 GPa leaves Tc largely unchanged but alters the superfluid density from exponential to linear behavior at low temperatures, indicative of nodal superconductivity under hydrostatic pressure. These findings identify CeRu2 as a prime platform for multifold tuning of superconductivity in a 3D correlated material. The pyrochlore compound CeRu2 hosts a three-dimensional kagome lattice with flat bands and it’s possible to tune superconductivity in the system under various conditions. Here, by combining muon spin rotation with uniaxial stress and hydrostatic pressure, the authors observe distinct and complementary tuning pathways, including a dome-shaped stress-induce devolution of Tc with a crossover from anisotropic to isotropic s-wave pairing, and a pressure-driven change from nodeless to nodal superconductivity.

Communications Physics
Shanghai Jiao Tong University (CN), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), University of Zurich (CH), Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IN), University of Würzburg (DE), Paul Scherrer Institute (CH), Southern University of Science and Technology (CN), ETH Zurich (CH), Institute of Physics (CN), National Laboratory for Superconductivity (CN), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Technische Universität Dresden (DE)
Openalex Percentile: Top 41%
Rare-earth and actinide compounds
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