Abstract

Double Dirac materials are a topological phase of matter in which a non-symmorphic symmetry enforces greater electronic degeneracy than normally expected − up to eightfold. The cubic palladium bronzes NaPd3O4 and LaPd3S4 are built of Pd3X4 (X = O, S) anionic frameworks that are ionically bonded to A cations (A = Na, La). These materials were recently identified computationally as harboring eightfold fermions. Here we report the preparation of single crystals and electronic properties of LaPd3S4. Measurements down to T = 0.45 K and in magnetic fields up to μ0H = 65 T are consistent with normal Fermi liquid physics of a Dirac metal in the presence of dilute magnetic impurities. This interpretation is further confirmed by analysis of specific heat, magnetization measurements and comparison to density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Through a bonding analysis of the DFT electronic structure of NaPd3O4 and LaPd3S4, we identify the origin of the stability of the anionic Pd3X4 framework at higher electron counts for X = S than X = O, and propose chemical tuning strategies to enable shifting the 8-fold fermion points to the Fermi level.

Description

Bonding and electronic nature of the anionic framework in LaPd3S4

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