Spin-Orientation-Dependent Topological States in Two-Dimensional Antiferromagnetic NiTl2S4 Monolayers

Chern-Insulator Phase in Antiferromagnets

The long-sought Chern insulators that manifest a quantum anomalous Hall effect are typically considered to occur in ferromagnets. Here, we theoretically predict the realizabilities of Chern insulators in antiferromagnets, in which the magnetic sublattices are connected by symmetry operators enforcing zero net magnetic moment. Our symmetry analysis provides comprehensive magnetic layer point groups that allow antiferromagnetic (AFM) Chern insulators, revealing that an in-plane magnetic configuration is required. Followed by first-principles calculations, such design principles naturally lead to two categories of material candidates, exemplified by monolayer RbCr4S8 and bilayer Mn3Sn with collinear and noncollinear AFM orders, respectively. We further show that the Chern number could be tuned by slight ferromagnetic canting as an effective pivot. Our work elucidates the nature of the Chern-insulator phase in AFM systems, paving a new avenue for designing quantum anomalous Hall insulators with the integration of nondissipative transport and the promising advantages of the AFM order.

Tunable Topological States in Stacked Chern Insulator Bilayers

The emergence of intrinsic quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) insulators with a long-range ferromagnetic (FM) order triggers unprecedented prosperity for combining topology and magnetism in low dimensions. Built upon atom-thin Chern insulator monolayer MnBr₃, we propose that the topologically nontrivial electronic states can be systematically tuned by inherent magnetic orders and external electric/optical fields in stacked Chern insulator bilayers. The FM bilayer illustrates a high-Chern-number QAH state characterized by both quantized Hall plateaus and specific magneto-optical Kerr angles. In antiferromagnetic bilayers, Berry curvature singularity induced by electrostatic fields or lasers emerges, which further leads to a novel implementation of the layer Hall effect depending on the chirality of irradiated circularly polarized light. These results demonstrate that abundant tunable topological properties can be achieved in stacked Chern insulator bilayers, thereby suggesting a universal routine to modulate d-orbital-dominated topological Dirac fermions.

Theoretical Prediction of Antiferromagnetic Skyrmion Crystal in Janus Monolayer CrSi2N2As2

An antiferromagnetic skyrmion crystal (AF-SkX), a regular array of antiferromagnetic skyrmions, is a fundamental phenomenon in the field of condensed-matter physics. So far, very few proposals have been made to realize the AF-SkX, and most have been based on three-dimensional (3D) materials. Herein, using first-principles calculations and Monte Carlo simulations, we report the identification of AF-SkX in a two-dimensional lattice of the Janus monolayer CrSi2N2As2. Arising from the broken inversion symmetry and strong spin-orbit coupling, a large Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction is obtained in the Janus monolayer CrSi2N2As2. This, combined with the geometric frustration of its triangular lattice, gives rise to the skyrmion physics and long-sought AF-SkX in the presence of an external magnetic field. More intriguingly, this system presents two different antiferromagnetic skyrmion phases, and such a phenomenon is distinct from those reported in 3D systems. Furthermore, by contacting with Sc2CO2, the creation and annihilation of AF-SkX in Janus monolayer CrSi2N2As2 can be achieved through ferroelectricity. These findings greatly enrich the research on antiferromagnetic skyrmions.

Antiferromagnetic Phase Induced by Nitrogen Doping in 2D Cr2S3

Exploration for the new members of air-stable 2D antiferromagnetic magnets to widen the magnetic families has drawn great attention due to its potential applications in spintronic devices. In addition to seeking the intrinsic antiferromagnets, externally introducing antiferromagnetic ordering in existing 2D materials, such as structural regulation and phase engineering, may be a promising way to modulate antiferromagnetism in the 2D limit. In this work, the in situ nitrogen doping growth of ultrathin 2D Cr₂S₃ nanoflakes has been achieved. Antiferromagnetic ordering in 2D Cr₂S₃ nanoflakes can be triggered by nitrogen doping induced new phase (space group P3¯1c). This work provides a new route to realize antiferromagnetism in atomically thin 2D magnets and greatly extend applications of 2D magnets in valleytronics and spintronics.

Two-dimensional magnetic atomic crystals

Two-dimensional (2D) magnetic crystals show many fascinating physical properties and have potential device applications in many fields. In this paper, the preparation, physical properties and device applications of 2D magnetic atomic crystals are reviewed. First, three preparation methods are presented, including chemical vapor deposition (CVD) molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and single-crystal exfoliation. Second, physical properties of 2D magnetic atomic crystals, including ferromagnetism, antiferromagnetism, magnetic regulation and anomalous Hall effect are presented. Third, the application of 2D magnetic atomic crystals in heterojunctions reluctance and other aspects are briefly introduced. Finally, the future development direction and possible challenges of 2D magnetic atomic crystals are briefly addressed.

A magnetic topological insulator in two-dimensional EuCd2Bi2: giant gap with robust topology against magnetic transitions

Magnetic topological states open up exciting opportunities for exploring fundamental topological quantum physics and innovative design of topological spintronics devices. However, the nontrivial topologies, for most known magnetic topological states, are usually associated with and may be heavily deformed by fragile magnetism. Here, using a tight-binding model and first-principles calculations, we demonstrate that a highly robust magnetic topological insulator phase, which remains intact under both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic configurations, can emerge in two-dimensional EuCd₂Bi₂ quintuple layers. Because of spin-orbital coupling, an inverted gap with intrinsic band inversions occuring simultaneously for up and down spin channels is obtained, accompanied by a nonzero spin Chern number and a pair of gapless edge states, and remarkably the magnitude of the nontrivial band gap for EuCd₂Bi₂ reaches as much as 750 meV. Moreover, the robustness of the magnetic TI phase is further confirmed by rotating the magnetization directions, indicating that EuCd₂Bi₂ represents a promising material for understanding and utilizing the topological insulating states in two-dimensional spin-orbit magnets.

Floquet-Dirac fermions in monolayer graphene by Wannier functions

Wannier functions have been widely applied in the study of topological properties and Floquet-Bloch bands of materials. Usually, the real-space Wannier functions are linked to thek-space Hamiltonian by two types of Fourier transform (FT), namely lattice-gauge FT (LGFT) and atomic-gauge FT (AGFT), but the differences between these two FTs on Floquet-Bloch bands have rarely been addressed. Taking monolayer graphene as an example, we demonstrate that LGFT gives different topological descriptions on the Floquet-Bloch bands for the structurally equivalent directions which are obviously unphysical, while AGFT is immune to this dilemma. We introduce the atomic-laser periodic effect to explain the different Floquet-Bloch bands between the LGFT and AGFT. Using AGFT, we showed that linearly polarized laser could effectively manipulate the properties of the Dirac fermions in graphene, such as the location, generation and annihilation of Dirac points. This proposal offers not only deeper understanding on the role of Wannier functions in solving the Floquet systems, but also a promising platform to study the interaction between the time-periodic laser field and materials.

Magnon-phonon interaction in antiferromagnetic two-dimensional MXenes

Antiferromagnetic material possesses excellent robustness to an external magnetic field perturbation, which makes it promising in application of spintronic devices. The magnon-phonon interaction plays a vital role in spintronic devices. In this work, we performed first-principles calculation to study the effect of magnon-phonon interaction on magnon spectra of the antiferromagnetic MXenes Cr₂TiC₂FCl, and calculated the phonon dominated magnon relaxation time based on the magnon spectra broadening. Due to the large exchange constants across Cr-Cr pairs, high magnon energy is found in Cr₂TiC₂FCl. We find that compared with the acoustic magnons, the optical magnons have stronger interaction with phonon modes. Moreover, relaxation time of optical magnons and acoustic magnons have quite different wavevector dependence. Our results about spin coupling to specific phonon polarizations can shed light on the understanding of magnon damping and energy dissipation in two-dimensional antiferromagnetic materials.

Charge transfer and strain tuned antiferromagnetism in the two-dimensional CrCl3/[Mo2C(-O)]2 heterojunction

Magnetic ordering in two-dimensional materials with atomic level thickness has been one of the most important issues in condensed matter physics and material science. Most previous studies have focused on the two-dimensional ferromagnetic systems, while the antiferromagnetic systems have been much less touched. Here, by using first-principles calculations and Monte Carlo simulation, a two-dimensional antiferromagnetic heterojunction: CrCl3/[Mo2C(-O)]2, is predicted, by tuning the electronic distribution. The ferromagnetic coupling between the Cr-Cr atoms in the CrCl3/(Mo2C)2 heterostructure is enhanced by the transferred electrons from Mo2C, which will occupy the t2g orbits of Cr. With the O adsorbed on the Mo2C, the Cr-Cl bond length increases and the superexchange interaction is decreased. The magnetic ground state changes to antiferromagnetism. More interestingly, under a moderate compressive biaxial strain, its Néel temperature of CrCl3/(Mo2C-O)2 can be significantly increased for the enhanced direct exchange of Cr-Cr atom with a value of 146 K. The heterojunction is useful for two-dimensional spintronic logic, ultrafast magnetodynamic devices and information storage for new generation computer devices.

Antiferromagnetic Topological Insulator with Nonsymmorphic Protection in Two Dimensions

The recent demonstration of topological states in antiferromagnets (AFMs) provides an exciting platform for exploring prominent physical phenomena and applications of antiferromagnetic spintronics. A famous example is the AFM topological insulator (TI) state, which, however, was still not observed in two dimensions. Using a tight-binding model and first-principles calculations, we show that, in contrast to previously observed AFM topological insulators in three dimensions, an AFM TI can emerge in two dimensions as a result of a nonsymmorphic symmetry that combines the twofold rotation symmetry and half-lattice translation. Based on the spin Chern number, Wannier charge centers, and gapless edge states analysis, we identify intrinsic AFM XMnY (X=Sr and Ba, Y=Sn and Pb) quintuple layers as experimentally feasible examples of predicted topological states with a stable crystal structure and giant magnitude of the nontrivial band gaps, reaching as much as 186 meV for SrMnPb, thereby promoting these systems as promising candidates for innovative spintronics applications.