Strain engineering of ultrafast magnetism in the room-temperature vdW ferromagnet Fe3GaTe2

Abstract

Controlling ultrafast magnetic dynamics is critical to understanding nonequilibrium spin interactions and advancing high-speed spintronics. However, a lack of efficient in situ tuning strategies leaves most ultrafast studies largely dependent on the intrinsic properties of the individual materials. Here we demonstrate continuous strain tuning of both the equilibrium magnetic response and ultrafast demagnetization dynamics in the room-temperature van der Waals ferromagnet Fe3GaTe2. Applying up to 4.2% uniaxial tensile strain increases the coercive field from nearly zero to 100 Oe, consistent with an enhancement of the effective perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect measurements further reveal strain-accelerated ultrafast demagnetization, with 1.2% tensile strain reducing the characteristic demagnetization time by approximately 20%. Remarkably, strain accesses an accelerated demagnetization regime that cannot be reached simply by increasing pump fluence in the unstrained sample. Combined with first-principles calculations, our results resolve that the applied strain modifies the spin-lattice energy transfer, leading to the observed accelerated demagnetization. These findings establish mechanical strain as an effective route for on-demand control of ultrafast magnetic dynamics while reducing the required optical energy by reconfiguring the magnetic energy landscape and associated spin-relaxation pathways.