Structure-dependent high-TC ferromagnetism in Mn-doped GeSe
Deren Li1, Xi Zhang1, Wenjie He1
1College of Physics, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China. xizhang@scu.edu.cn.
Nanoscale
|September 7, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed high-Curie temperature (TC) ferromagnetic manganese-doped germanium selenide (GeMnSe) diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMSs). GeMnSe nanocombs achieved a record TC of 309 K, paving the way for spintronic applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Layered IV-VI diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMSs) show ferromagnetism but suffer from low Curie temperatures (TC ≤ 200 K).
- Low TC limits the practical applications of DMSs in spintronic devices.
- Developing DMSs with higher TC is crucial for advancing spintronic technologies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize manganese-doped germanium selenide (GeMnSe) DMSs with enhanced ferromagnetic properties.
- To investigate the relationship between nanostructure and ferromagnetism (FM) in GeMnSe.
- To explore the potential of GeMnSe for high-temperature spintronic applications.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of GeMnSe DMSs with varying Mn concentrations using chemical vapor deposition.
- Structural characterization of synthesized samples, including single-crystalline nanocombs (SC-NCs), polycrystalline nanoparticles (PC-NPs), and amorphous nanoaggregates (a-NAs).
- Magnetic property measurements, including Curie temperature (TC) and saturation magnetization (MS).
Main Results:
- GeMnSe DMSs were successfully synthesized with diverse nanostructures.
- All synthesized GeMnSe samples exhibited ferromagnetism (FM).
- GeMnSe SC-NCs demonstrated a record high TC of 309 K and a strong magnetic moment (4.37 μB/Mn), surpassing previous IV-VI DMSs.
- FM properties were found to be dependent on the nanostructure, crystalline order, and shape anisotropy.
Conclusions:
- The study establishes a correlation between nanostructure and ferromagnetism in GeSe-based DMSs.
- GeMnSe SC-NCs represent a promising material for high-temperature spintronic applications due to their record TC.
- The findings suggest GeSe-based DMSs as a valuable platform for fundamental physics research and spintronic device development.
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