Electron pressure drives THz phonons in metal–metal superlattices
Ultrafast control of lattice motion in metals is a central challenge for high-frequency strain engineering and spintronic applications. Coherent strain control at terahertz (THz) frequencies in metals has remained elusive because free electrons are expected to delocalize energy beyond the optical penetration depth, preventing rapid and efficient stress generation. Here we show that robust and cost-effective metal-metal superlattices (SLs), where periodic repetitions of bilayers - each layer a few atoms thick - are deposited by sputtering, constitute thermoacoustic metamaterials that overcome this limitation. We combine femtosecond X-ray diffraction with mode-resolved density-functional theory and two-temperature modeling to show that electron pressure, rather than phonon stress, drives a large-amplitude coherent terahertz (1 THz) lattice oscillation in sputtered Pt/Cu superlattices. We establish electron pressure as an engineerable, dominant actuation mechanism in metallic metamaterials which can be tailored by the pitch and the constituent materials of the sputtered SL structure, enabling applications such as ultrafast strain-mediated antiferromagnetic spintronic devices.
Authors
- Maximilian Mattern (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0619-3117)
- Ulrike Boesenberg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1195-6329)
- Wonhyuk Jo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7437-6129)
- Jörg Hallmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1996-397X)
- Roman Shayduk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3577-8918)
- James J. Wrigley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6525-7413)
- Anders Madsen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6594-1029)
- Jan‐Etienne Pudell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8268-444X)
- Johannes Möller (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8363-9077)
- Marc Herzog (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3378-2657)
- Daniel Schick (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7988-6489)
- Angel Rodríguez-Fernández (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0587-5263)
- M. Hehn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4240-5925)
- Matias Bargheer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0952-6602)
- Peter M. Oppeneer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9069-2631)
- A. von Reppert (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6129-9734)
- Chandan K. Singh
Institutions
- Uppsala University (SE)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- University of Potsdam (DE)
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (DE)
- Institut Jean Lamour (FR)
- Forschungsverbund Berlin (DE)
- European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2026-06-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-73927-y
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Metamaterials and Metasurfaces Applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.95
Funders
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Knut och Alice Wallenbergs Stiftelse
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron
- Leibniz-Gemeinschaft