Lattice softening and diffusive dynamics in the polar metal LiReO
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Kantaro Murayama; Ryota Masuki; Cédric Tassel; Hideaki Sakai; Tatsuya Yanagisawa; Keito Yoshida; Hiroshi Oike; Suguru Yoshida; Xiangyu Gu; Kohdai Ishida; Morito Namba; Ksenia Denisova; Valérie Dupray; Simon Clevers; Olivier Mentré; Takuya Nomoto; Terumasa Tadano; Craig M. Brown; Peter Lemmens; Ryotaro Arita; Hiroshi Takatsu; Hiroshi Kageyama

doi:10.1126/sciadv.adt3886

Journal article Lattice softening and diffusive dynamics in the polar metal LiReO ₃

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Kantaro Murayama, Ryota Masuki, Cédric Tassel, Hideaki Sakai, Tatsuya Yanagisawa, Keito Yoshida, Hiroshi Oike, Suguru Yoshida, Xiangyu Gu, Kohdai Ishida, Morito Namba, Ksenia Denisova, Valérie Dupray, Simon Clevers, Olivier Mentré, Takuya Nomoto, Terumasa Tadano, Craig M. Brown, Peter Lemmens, Ryotaro Arita, Hiroshi Takatsu, Hiroshi Kageyama. Lattice softening and diffusive dynamics in the polar metal LiReO ₃. Science Advances. 2026, 12 (14), eadt3886. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adt3886

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Polar metals, characterized by the nontrivial coexistence of metallicity and polar structural order, define an emerging frontier in quantum materials research. Yet, the interplay between their structural phase transitions and fluctuation dynamics remains poorly understood. Here, we reveal distinct diffusive dynamics in metallic LiReO3 associated with its polar-to-nonpolar (P-NP) transition. Unlike isostructural LiOsO3 and related systems, LiReO3 exhibits pronounced phase fluctuations both above and below Ts. Thermoelectric, Raman, and ultrasound measurements demonstrate a probe-dependent thermal hysteresis, while ultrasound data further show lattice softening and persistent resonant absorption at low temperatures across a broad timescale (1-100 μs). These observations indicate a multiscale spatiotemporal dynamics governed by a shallow anharmonic potential stabilized by itinerant electrons, as supported by finite temperature first-principles calculations. By mapping the fluctuation landscape shaped by itinerant electrons, this work offers a new perspective for exploiting fluctuation-driven phenomena in polar metals.

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