Broken symmetries associated with a Kagome chiral charge order

Chirality, or handedness, is ubiquitous in science, from cell biology to physics, and in condensed matter can underlie exotic phases such as chiral charge density waves and chiral superconductivity. However, detecting subtle broken symmetries that define such states is challenging, leading to debate and controversy. Here, using second-order optical response, we reveal the broken symmetries of a chiral charge density wave in the Kagome lattice KV₃Sb₅. Polarization-dependent mid-infrared photocurrent microscopy uncovers a longitudinal, helicity-dependent photocurrent associated with the charge order, indicating broken inversion and mirror symmetries. These findings, supported by theoretical analysis, directly establish the intrinsic chiral nature of the ordered state. Moreover, the absence of a circular photogalvanic effect perpendicular to the incident light imposes stringent constraints on the point-group symmetries. Our study not only visualizes the chiral nature of the Kagome charge order, but also highlights the nonlinear photogalvanic effect as a sensitive probe for detecting subtle symmetry breakings.. Authors: Cheng, Zi-Jia [Princeton University, NJ (United States)]; Hossain, Md Shafayat [Princeton University, NJ (United States)] (ORCID:0000000237445877); Zhang, Qi [Princeton University, NJ (United States)]; Shao, Sen [Nanyang Technological University (Singapore)]; Liu, Jinjin [Beijing Institute of Technology (China); Beijing Institute of Technology, Zhuhai (China)]. DOE Contract: FG02-05ER46200; SC0002613. Subjects: Nonlinear optics; Phase transitions and critical phenomena; Topological matter