Electrically Tunable, Rapid Spin-Orbit Torque Induced Modulation of Colossal Magnetoresistance in Mn3Si2Te6 Nanoflakes

Cheng Tan; Mingxun Deng; Yuanjun Yang; Linlin An; Weifeng Ge; Sultan Albarakati; Majid Panahandeh-Fard; James Partridge; Dimitrie Culcer; Bin Lei; Tao Wu; Xiangde Zhu; Mingliang Tian; Xianhui Chen; Rui-Qiang Wang; Lan Wang

doi:10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c00054

Electrically Tunable, Rapid Spin-Orbit Torque Induced Modulation of Colossal Magnetoresistance in Mn₃Si₂Te₆ Nanoflakes

Nano Lett. 2024 Apr 10;24(14):4158-4164. doi: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c00054. Epub 2024 Apr 1.

Authors

Cheng Tan^{1

2}, Mingxun Deng³, Yuanjun Yang¹, Linlin An¹, Weifeng Ge¹, Sultan Albarakati^{2

4}, Majid Panahandeh-Fard², James Partridge⁵, Dimitrie Culcer⁶, Bin Lei⁷, Tao Wu^{8

9}, Xiangde Zhu¹⁰, Mingliang Tian^{7

10}, Xianhui Chen^{8

9}, Rui-Qiang Wang³, Lan Wang^{1

5}

Affiliations

¹ Lab of Low Dimensional Magnetism and Spintronic Devices, School of Physics, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, Anhui 230009, China.
² ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (FLEET), School of Science, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, Australia.
³ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials, SPTE, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China.
⁴ Physics Department, Faculty of Science and Arts, University of Jeddah, P.O. Box 80200, Khulais 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Physics, School of Science, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, Australia.
⁶ School of Physics and ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies, UNSW Node, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia.
⁷ School of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, China.
⁸ Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China.
⁹ CAS Key Laboratory of Strongly coupled Quantum Matter Physics, Department of Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China.
¹⁰ Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory, HFIPS, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Hefei, Anhui 230031, China.

PMID: 38557108
DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c00054

Abstract

As a quasi-layered ferrimagnetic material, Mn₃Si₂Te₆ nanoflakes exhibit magnetoresistance behavior that is fundamentally different from their bulk crystal counterparts. They offer three key properties crucial for spintronics. First, at least 10⁶ times faster response compared to that exhibited by bulk crystals has been observed in current-controlled resistance and magnetoresistance. Second, ultralow current density is required for resistance modulation (∼5 A/cm²). Third, electrically gate-tunable magnetoresistance has been realized. Theoretical calculations reveal that the unique magnetoresistance behavior in the Mn₃Si₂Te₆ nanoflakes arises from a magnetic field induced band gap shift across the Fermi level. The rapid current induced resistance variation is attributed to spin-orbit torque, an intrinsically ultrafast process (∼nanoseconds). This study suggests promising avenues for spintronic applications. In addition, it highlights Mn₃Si₂Te₆ nanoflakes as a suitable platform for investigating the intriguing physics underlying chiral orbital moments, magnetic field induced band variation, and spin torque.

Keywords: colossal magnetoresistance; electric current tunable; gate-voltage tunable; spin−orbit torque.