Pressure-controlled interlayer magnetism in atomically thin CrI3.
Tingxin Li1, Shengwei Jiang2, Nikhil Sivadas1
1School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
Nature Materials
|October 30, 2019
Summary
Hydrostatic pressure induces an irreversible magnetic transition in chromium triiodide (CrI3) thin films, shifting from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic coupling. This change is linked to a pressure-induced alteration in the material's stacking order.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Materials Science
- Magnetism
Background:
- Stacking order significantly impacts the physical properties of 2D van der Waals materials.
- Chromium triiodide (CrI3) is a van der Waals magnetic insulator with potential applications in spintronics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of hydrostatic pressure on the stacking order and magnetic properties of CrI3.
- To explore the relationship between stacking order and magnetic ground state in CrI3 thin films.
Main Methods:
- Application of hydrostatic pressure up to 2 GPa.
- Magnetic Circular Dichroism (MCD) and electron tunneling measurements to probe magnetic transitions.
- Polarized Raman spectroscopy to characterize structural changes (stacking order).
Main Results:
- An irreversible antiferromagnetic-to-ferromagnetic interlayer magnetic transition was observed in CrI3 thin films under pressure.
- The magnetic transition was accompanied by a pressure-induced change in stacking order from monoclinic to rhombohedral.
- Interlayer antiferromagnetic coupling energy was tunable by nearly 100% with pressure before the structural transition.
- The study revealed an interlayer ferromagnetic ground state in CrI3, not previously observed in exfoliated thin films.
Conclusions:
- Stacking order is a critical factor determining the magnetic ground state of CrI3.
- Pressure-induced structural modifications can be used to engineer magnetic properties in 2D materials.
- Findings align with theoretical calculations and suggest pathways for creating nanoscale magnetic textures via moiré engineering.
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