Phase-controllable growth of ultrathin 2D magnetic FeTe crystals.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 32709904.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-17253-x and PMC identifier 7382463.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Two-dimensional (2D) magnets with intrinsic ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic (FM/AFM) ordering are highly desirable for future spintronic devices. However, the direct growth of their crystals is in its infancy. Here we report a chemical vapor deposition approach to controllably grow layered tetragonal and non-layered hexagonal FeTe nanoplates with their thicknesses down to 3.6 and 2.8 nm, respectively. Moreover, transport measurements reveal these obtained FeTe nanoflakes show a thickness-dependent magnetic transition. Antiferromagnetic tetragonal FeTe with the Néel temperature (T<sub>N</sub>) gradually decreases from 70 to 45 K as the thickness declines from 32 to 5 nm. And ferromagnetic hexagonal FeTe is accompanied by a drop of the Curie temperature (T<sub>C</sub>) from 220 K (30 nm) to 170 K (4 nm). Theoretical calculations indicate that the ferromagnetic order in hexagonal FeTe is originated from its concomitant lattice distortion and Stoner instability. This study highlights its potential applications in future spintronic devices.