Electronic coherence evolution at the nearly commensurate-incommensurate CDW boundary of
Phys. Rev. Materials 10, 034007 – Published 30 March, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/jzns-js96
Abstract
Transition-metal dichalcogenides host a variety of charge-density-wave phases that couple lattice, charge, and correlation effects. In , the commensurate and nearly commensurate states are well characterized, yet the transition near 350 K into the incommensurate phase has lacked direct momentum-resolved insight. Here, we use temperature-dependent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to track the electronic structure across this transition. We observe a suppression of quasiparticle spectral weight at the Brillouin-zone center, coincident with the transport anomaly, but without clear evidence of a full band-gap opening. The transition appears to involve momentum-dependent redistribution of spectral weight, consistent with a loss of coherence that reshapes the Fermi surface while leaving conduction dispersions largely intact. These results suggest that the nearly commensurate–incommensurate transition may not align with a conventional metal-insulator transition picture, but rather as an electronic reconstruction driven by loss of coherence. Our work provides new microscopic insight into the resistivity anomaly near room temperature and may guide design principles for collective electronic switching in transition-metal dichalcogenides.
