Abstract
Electronic nematicity, a consequence of rotational symmetry breaking, is an emergent phenomenon in various new materials. In order to fully utilize the functions of these materials, ability of tuning them through a knob, the nematic director, is desired. Here we report a successful manipulation of the nematic director, the vector order parameter (d vector), in the spin-triplet superconducting state of by magnetic fields. At , the ac susceptibility related to the upper critical field shows a twofold symmetry in the basal plane. At , however, the susceptibility shows a sixfold symmetry, which has never been reported before in any superconductor. These results indicate that the vector initially pinned to a certain direction is unlocked by a threshold field to respect the trigonal crystal symmetry. We further reveal that the superconducting gap in different crystals converges to symmetry at high fields, although it differs at low fields.
- Received 23 January 2023
- Revised 2 March 2023
- Accepted 15 March 2023
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.107.L100505
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