Coexistence of charge density wave and field-tuned magnetic states in TmNiC2

Exploring the relations between coexisting, cooperative, or competing types of ordering is a key to identify and harness the mechanisms governing the mutual interactions between them and to utilize their combined properties. We have experimentally explored the response of the charge density wave (CDW) to various antiferromagnetic, metamagnetic, and field-aligned ferromagnetic states that constitute the magnetic phase diagram of TmNiC2. The high-resolution x-ray diffraction experiment employing synchrotron radiation at low temperature and high magnetic field allowed one to follow the superstructure satellite reflections, being a sensitive probe of CDW. This investigation not only reveals direct evidence that the charge density wave avoids even a partial suppression in the antiferromagnetic ground state, but also proves that this state coexists, without any visible signatures of weakening, in the entire dome of the magnetically ordered phases, including the field-aligned ferromagnetic state. The calculations of the electronic and phonon structures support the experiment, revealing that the dominant contribution to the CDW transition stems from momentum-dependent electron-phonon coupling. We conclude that this mechanism prevents the CDW from vanishing, although the nesting conditions within the magnetically ordered phases deteriorate.