Simplicity Out of Complexity: Band Structure for W20O58 Superconductor

Abstract

The band structure, density of states, and the Fermi surface of a recently discovered superconductor, oxygen-deficient tungsten oxide WO2.9 that is equivalent to W20O58, is studied within the density functional theory (DFT) in the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). Here we show that despite the extremely complicated structure containing 78 atoms in the unit cell, the low-energy band structure is quite feasible. Fermi level is crossed by no more than 10 bands per one spin projection (and even 9 bands per pseudospin projection when the spin-orbit coupling is considered) originating from the t2g 5d-orbitals of tungsten atoms forming zigzag chains. These bands become occupied because of the specific zigzag octahedra distortions. To demonstrate the role of distortions, we compare band structures of W20O58 with the real crystal structure and with the idealized one. We also propose a basis for a minimal low-energy tight-binding model for W20O58.