Clues to potential dipolar-Kondo and RKKY interactions in a polar metal

Abstract

Abstract The coexistence of electric dipoles and itinerant electrons in a solid was postulated decades ago, before being experimentally established in several ‘polar metals’ during the last decade. Here, we report a concentration-driven polar-to-nonpolar phase transition in electron-doped BaTiO3. Comparing our case with other polar metals, we find a particular threshold concentration (n *) linked to the dipole density (n d). The universal ratio $$\frac{{n}_{{{{\rm{d}}}}}}{{n}^{* }}\approx 8.0(6)$$ n d n * ≈ 8.0 ( 6 ) suggests a common mechanism across different polar systems, possibly explained by a dipolar Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida theory. Moreover, in BaTiO3, we observe enhanced thermopower and upturn on resistivity at low temperatures near n *, resembling the Kondo effect. We argue that local electric dipoles act as two-level-systems, whose fluctuations couple with surrounding electron clouds, giving rise to a potential dipolar-counterpart of the Kondo effect. Our findings unveil a mostly uncharted territory for exploring emerging physics associated with electron-dipole correlations, encouraging further theoretical work on dipolar-RKKY and Kondo interactions.