Charge-spin dichotomy in the kagome metal CsCr₃Sb₅.

Abstract

Kagome metals host a variety of correlated electronic states, yet the nature of their intertwined orders remains an open question. The recently discovered Cr-based kagome compound CsCr₃Sb₅ differs from its V-based analogue CsV₃Sb₅ by exhibiting stronger correlations and a magnetic ground state. While multiple broken symmetries have been reported in CsV₃Sb₅, only a single transition at T^* ≈ 55 K has been identified at ambient pressure in CsCr₃Sb₅, with its origin unresolved. Here we uncover an additional phase transition above T^* through elastoresistivity measurements. Rotational symmetry breaking without divergent nematic susceptibility is identified around T ≈ 64 K, which is most consistently explained as the emergence of charge-density-wave order. Laser-based photoemission-electron microscopy further reveals three-domain structures associated with spin-density-wave order below T^*. These findings indicate distinct charge and spin order transitions in CsCr₃Sb₅, offering crucial insight into the intertwined orders and pressure-induced superconductivity in this system.