High-Throughput Inverse Design for 2D Ferroelectric Rashba Semiconductors

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Materials Science
• Spintronics

Background:

• Achieving electric control of spin is a key challenge in spintronics.
• Ferroelectric Rashba semiconductors offer potential for electrical manipulation of spin texture.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify novel two-dimensional (2D) ferroelectric Rashba semiconductors using inverse design.
• To explore materials with electrically switchable spin textures for spintronic applications.

Main Methods:

• Inverse design approach incorporating principles of the Rashba effect and ferroelectricity.
• Screening of materials databases and high-throughput density functional theory calculations.
• Identification of A2P2X6, ABP2X6, and AB crystal structures exhibiting both phenomena.

Main Results:

• Identified 14 promising AB monolayer materials as 2D ferroelectric Rashba semiconductors.
• These materials exhibit a pure Rashba effect at the conduction band minimum.
• Demonstrated surmountable energy barriers for ferroelectric polarization, enabling electrical switching.

Conclusions:

• The discovered 2D ferroelectric Rashba semiconductors possess ideal properties for spintronics.
• Electrically reversible spin textures are achievable, making them suitable for next-generation spintronic devices.