arXiv subjects

Le Duc Anh

Publications and source records attributed to Le Duc Anh.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

Ferromagnetism and giant magnetoresistance in zinc-blende FeAs monolayers embedded in semiconductor structures

Material structures containing tetrahedral FeAs bonds, depending on their density and geometrical distribution, can host several competing quantum ground states ranging from superconductivity to ferromagnetism. Here we examine structures of quasi two-dimensional (2D) layers of tetrahedral Fe-As bonds embedded with a regular interval in a semiconductor InAs matrix, which resembles the crystal structure of Fe-based superconductors. Contrary to the case of Fe-based pnictides, these FeAs/InAs superlattices (SLs) exhibit ferromagnetism, whose Curie temperature (Tc) increases rapidly with decreasing the InAs interval thickness t_InAs (Tc ~ t_InAs^-3), and an extremely large magnetoresistance up to 500% that is tunable by a gate voltage. Our first principles calculations reveal the important role of disordered positions of Fe atoms in the establishment of ferromagnetism in these quasi-2D FeAs-based SLs. These unique features mark the FeAs/InAs SLs as promising structures for spintronic applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Alternation of Magnetic Anisotropy Accompanied by Metal-Insulator Transition in Strained Ultrathin Manganite Heterostructures

Fundamental understanding of interfacial magnetic properties in ferromagnetic heterostructures is essential to utilize ferromagnetic materials for spintronic device applications. In this paper, we investigate the interfacial magnetic and electronic structures of epitaxial single-crystalline LaAlO$_3$ (LAO)/La$_{0.6}$Sr$_{0.4}$MnO$_3$ (LSMO)/Nb:SrTiO$_3$ (Nb:STO) heterostructures with varying LSMO-layer thickness, in which the magnetic anisotropy strongly changes depending on the LSMO thickness due to the delicate balance between the strains originating from both the Nb:STO and LAO layers, using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) and photoemission spectroscopy (PES). We successfully detect the clear change of the magnetic behavior of the Mn ions concomitant with the thickness-dependent metal-insulator transition (MIT). Our results suggest that double-exchange interaction induces the ferromagnetism in the metallic LSMO film under tensile strain caused by the SrTiO$_3$ substrate, while superexchange interaction determines the magnetic behavior in the insulating LSMO film under compressive strain originating from the top LAO layer. Based on those findings, the formation of a magnetic dead layer near the LAO/LSMO interface is attributed to competition between the superexchange interaction via Mn 3$d_{3z^2-r^2}$ orbitals under compressive strain and the double-exchange interaction via the 3$d_{x^2-y^2}$ orbitals.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Minority-Spin Impurity Band in n-Type (In,Fe)As: A Materials Perspective for Ferromagnetic Semiconductors

Fully understanding the properties of n-type ferromagnetic semiconductors (FMSs), complementary to the mainstream p-type ones, is a challenging goal in semiconductor spintronics because ferromagnetism in n-type FMSs is theoretically non-trivial. Soft-x-ray angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (SX-ARPES) is a powerful approach to examine the mechanism of carrier-induced ferromagnetism in FMSs. Here our SX-ARPES study on the prototypical n-type FMS (In,Fe)As reveals the entire band structure including the Fe-3d impurity bands (IBs) and the host InAs ones, and provides direct evidence for electron occupation of the InAs-derived conduction band (CB). A minority-spin Fe-3d IB is found to be located just below the conduction-band minimum (CBM). The IB is formed by the hybridization of the unoccupied Fe-3d states with the occupied CBM of InAs in a spin-dependent way, resulting in the large spin polarization of CB. The band structure with the IB is varied with band filling, which cannot be explained by the rigid-band picture, suggesting a unified picture for realization of carrier-induced ferromagnetism in FMS materials.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Evolution of the Fe-3$d$ impurity band state as the origin of high Curie temperature in p-type ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb

(Ga$_{1-x}$,Fe$_x$)Sb is one of the promising ferromagnetic semiconductors for spintronic device applications because its Curie temperature ($T_{\rm C}$) is above 300 K when the Fe concentration $x$ is equal to or higher than ~0.20. However, the origin of the high $T_{\rm C}$ in (Ga,Fe)Sb remains to be elucidated. To address this issue, we use resonant photoemission spectroscopy (RPES) and first-principles calculations to investigate the $x$ dependence of the Fe 3$d$ states in (Ga$_{1-x}$,Fe$_x$)Sb ($x$ = 0.05, 0.15, and 0.25) thin films. The observed Fe 2$p$-3$d$ RPES spectra reveal that the Fe-3$d$ impurity band (IB) crossing the Fermi level becomes broader with increasing $x$, which is qualitatively consistent with the picture of double-exchange interaction. Comparison between the obtained Fe-3$d$ partial density of states and the first-principles calculations suggests that the Fe-3$d$ IB originates from the minority-spin ($\downarrow$) $e$ states. The results indicate that enhancement of the interaction between $e_\downarrow$ electrons with increasing $x$ is the origin of the high $T_{\rm C}$ in (Ga,Fe)Sb.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Current-in-plane spin-valve magnetoresistance in ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb heterostructures with high Curie temperature

We demonstrate spin-valve magnetoresistance with a current-in-plane (CIP) configuration in (Ga,Fe)Sb / InAs (thickness $t_\mathrm{InAs}$ nm) / (Ga,Fe)Sb trilayer heterostructures, where (Ga,Fe)Sb is a ferromagnetic semiconductor (FMS) with high Curie temperature ($T_\mathrm{C}$). An MR curve with an open minor loop is clearly observed at 3.7 K in a sample with $t_\mathrm{InAs}$ = 3 nm, which originates from the parallel - antiparallel magnetization switching of the (Ga,Fe)Sb layers and spin-dependent scattering at the (Ga,Fe)Sb / InAs interfaces. The MR ratio increases (from 0.03 to 1.6%) with decreasing $t_\mathrm{InAs}$ (from 9 to 3 nm) due to the enhancement of the interface scattering. This is the first demonstration of the spin-valve effect in Fe-doped FMS heterostructures, paving the way for device applications of these high- $T_\mathrm{C}$ FMSs.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Hybridization between the ligand $p$ band and Fe-3$d$ orbitals in the p-type ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb

(Ga,Fe)Sb is a promising ferromagnetic semiconductor for practical spintronic device applications because its Curie temperature ($T_{\rm C}$) is above room temperature. However, the origin of ferromagnetism with high $T_{\rm C}$ remains to be elucidated. Here, we use soft x-ray angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (SX-ARPES) to investigate the valence-band (VB) structure of (Ga$_{0.95}$,Fe$_{0.05}$)Sb including the Fe-3$d$ impurity band (IB), to unveil the mechanism of ferromagnetism in (Ga,Fe)Sb. We find that the VB dispersion in (Ga$_{0.95}$,Fe$_{0.05}$)Sb observed by SX-ARPES is similar to that of GaSb, indicating that the doped Fe atoms hardly affect the band dispersion. The Fe-3$d$ resonant ARPES spectra demonstrate that the Fe-3$d$ IB crosses the Fermi level ($E_{\rm F}$) and hybridizes with the VB of GaSb. These observations indicate that the VB structure of (Ga$_{0.95}$,Fe$_{0.05}$)Sb is consistent with that of the IB model which is based on double-exchange interaction between the localized 3$d$ electrons of the magnetic impurities. The results indicate that the ferromagnetism in (Ga,Fe)Sb is formed by the hybridization of the Fe-3$d$ IB with the ligand $p$ band of GaSb.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

In-plane to perpendicular magnetic anisotropy switching in heavily-Fe-doped ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb with high Curie temperature

We report switching of magnetic anisotropy (MA) from in-plane to perpendicular with increasing the thickness d of a (001)-oriented ferromagnetic-semiconductor (FMS) (Ga0.7,Fe0.3)Sb layer with a high Curie temperature (Tc > 320 K), using ferromagnetic resonance at room temperature. We show that the total MA energy (E) along the [001] direction changes its sign from positive (in-plane) to negative (perpendicular) with increasing d above an effective critical value \mathrm{d}_\mathrm{C}^\mathrm{*}\ ~ 42 nm. We reveal that (Ga,Fe)Sb has two-fold symmetry in the film plane. Meanwhile, in the plane perpendicular to the film including the in-plane [110] axis, the two-fold symmetry with the easy magnetization axis along [110] changes to four-fold symmetry with easy magnetization axis along <001> with increasing d. This peculiar behavior is different from that of (Ga,Mn)As, in which only the in-plane MA depends on the film thickness and has four-fold symmetry due to its dominant cubic anisotropy along the <100> axes. This work provides an important guide for controlling the easy magnetization axis of high-Tc FMS (Ga,Fe)Sb for room-temperature device applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Efficient intrinsic spin-to-charge current conversion in an all-epitaxial single-crystal perovskite-oxide heterostructure of La0.67Sr0.33MnO3/LaAlO3/SrTiO3

We demonstrate efficient intrinsic spin-to-charge current conversion in a two-dimensional electron gas using an all-epitaxial single-crystal heterostructure of LaSrMnO3/ LaAlO3 (LAO)/ SrTiO3 (STO), which can suppress spin scattering and give us an ideal environment to investigate intrinsic spin-charge conversion. With decreasing temperature to 20 K, the spin-to-charge conversion efficiency is drastically enhanced to +3.9 nm, which is the largest positive value ever reported for LAO/STO. Our band-structure calculation well reproduces this behavior and predicts further enhancement by controlling the density and relaxation time of the carriers.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Ultra-low-power orbital-controlled magnetization switching using a ferromagnetic oxide interface

A major challenge in spin-based electronics is reducing power consumption for magnetization switching of ferromagnets, which is being implemented by injecting a large spin-polarized current. The alternative approach is to control the magnetic anisotropy (MA) of the ferromagnet by an electric field. However, the voltage-induced MA is too weak to deterministically switch the magnetization without an assisting magnetic field, and the strategy towards this goal remains elusive. Here, we demonstrate a new scheme of orbital-controlled magnetization switching (OCMS): A sharp change in the MA is induced when the Fermi level is moved between energy bands with different orbital symmetries. Using a ferromagnetic oxide interface, we show that OCMS can be used to achieve a deterministic and magnetic-field-free 90 degree-magnetization switching solely by applying an extremely small electric field of 0.05 V/nm with a negligibly small current density of 10^-2 A/cm^2. Our results highlight the huge potential of band engineering in ferromagnetic materials for efficient magnetization control.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Magnetization process of the insulating ferromagnetic semiconductor (Al,Fe)Sb

We have studied the magnetization process of the new insulating ferromagnetic semiconductor (Al,Fe)Sb by means of x-ray magnetic circular dichroism. For an optimally doped sample with 10% Fe, a magnetization was found to rapidly increase at low magnetic fields and to saturate at high magnetic fields at room temperature, well above the Curie temperature of 40 K. We attribute this behavior to the existence of nanoscale Fe-rich ferromagnetic domains acting as superparamagnets. By fitting the magnetization curves using the Langevin function representing superparamagnetism plus the paramagnetic linear function, we estimated the average magnetic moment of the nanoscale ferromagnetic domain to be 300-400 $μ_{B}$, and the fraction of Fe atoms participating in the nano-scale ferromagnetism to be $\sim$50%. Such behavior was also reported for (In,Fe)As:Be and Ge:Fe, and seems to be a universal characteristic of the Fe-doped ferromagnetic semiconductors. Further Fe doping up to 14% led to the weakening of the ferromagnetism probably because antiferromagnetic superexchange interaction between nearest-neighbor Fe-Fe pairs becomes dominant.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2019

Heavily Fe-doped n-type ferromagnetic semiconductor (In,Fe)Sb with high Curie temperature and large magnetic anisotropy

We present high-temperature ferromagnetism and large magnetic anisotropy in heavily Fe-doped n-type ferromagnetic semiconductor (In1-x,Fex)Sb (x = 20 - 35%) thin films grown by low-temperature molecular beam epitaxy. The (In1-x,Fex)Sb thin films with x = 20 - 35% maintain the zinc-blende crystal and band structure with single-phase ferromagnetism. The Curie temperature (TC) of (In1-x,Fex)Sb reaches 390 K at x = 35%, which is significantly higher than room temperature and the highest value so far reported in III-V based ferromagnetic semiconductors. Moreover, large coercive force (HC = 160 Oe) and large remanent magnetization (Mr/MS = 71%) have been observed for a (In1-x,Fex)Sb thin film with x = 35%. Our results indicate that the n-type ferromagnetic semiconductor (In1-x,Fex)Sb is very promising for spintronics devices operating at room temperature.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2018

Giant gate-controlled proximity magnetoresistance in semiconductor-based ferromagnetic/nonmagnetic bilayers

The evolution of information technology has been driven by the discovery of new forms of large magnetoresistance (MR), such as giant magnetoresistance (GMR) and tunnelling magnetoresistance (TMR) in magnetic multilayers. Recently, new types of MR have been observed in much simpler bilayers consisting of ferromagnetic (FM)/nonmagnetic (NM) thin films; however, the magnitude of MR in these materials is very small (0.01 ~ 1%). Here, we demonstrate that NM/FM bilayers consisting of a NM InAs quantum well conductive channel and an insulating FM (Ga,Fe)Sb layer exhibit giant proximity magnetoresistance (PMR) (~80% at 14 T). This PMR is two orders of magnitude larger than the MR observed in NM/FM bilayers reported to date, and its magnitude can be controlled by a gate voltage. These results are explained by the penetration of the InAs two-dimensional-electron wavefunction into (Ga,Fe)Sb. The ability to strongly modulate the NM channel current by both electrical and magnetic gating represents a new concept of magnetic-gating spin transistors.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2018

Electronic structure of the novel high-$T_{\rm C}$ ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb: x-ray magnetic circular dichroism and resonance photoemission spectroscopy studies

The electronic structure and the magnetism of the novel ferromagnetic semiconductor (Ga,Fe)Sb, whose Curie temperature $T_{\rm C}$ can exceed room temperature, were investigated by means of x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD), and resonance photoemission spectroscopy (RPES). The line-shape analyses of the XAS and XMCD spectra suggest that the ferromagnetism is of intrinsic origin. The orbital magnetic moments deduced using XMCD sum rules were found to be large, indicating that there is a considerable amount of 3$d^{6}$ contribution to the ground state of Fe. From RPES, we observed a strong dispersive Auger peak and non-dispersive resonantly enhanced peaks in the valence-band spectra. The latter is a fingerprint of the correlated nature of Fe 3$d$ electrons, whereas the former indicates their itinerant nature. It was also found that the Fe 3$d$ states have finite contribution to the DOS at the Fermi energy. These states presumably consisting of majority-spin $p$-$d$ hybridized states or minority-spin $e$ states would be responsible for the ferromagnetic order in this material.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2018

Spin triplet superconducting proximity effect in a ferromagnetic semiconductor

Conventional spin-singlet superconductivity that deeply penetrates into ferromagnets is typically killed by the exchange interaction, which destroys the spin-singlet pairs. Under certain circumstances, however, superconductivity survives this interaction by adopting the pairing behavior of spin triplets. The necessary conditions for the emergence of triplet pairs are well-understood, owing to significant developments in theoretical frameworks and experiments. The long-term challenges to inducing superconductivity in magnetic semiconductors, however, involve difficulties in observing the finite supercurrent, even though the generation of superconductivity in host materials has been well-established and extensively examined. Here, we show the first evidence of proximity-induced superconductivity in a ferromagnetic semiconductor (In, Fe)As. The supercurrent reached a distance scale of $\sim 1~μ$m, which is comparable to the proximity range in two-dimensional electrons at surfaces of pure InAs. Given the long range of its proximity effects and its response to magnetic fields, we conclude that spin-triplet pairing is dominant in proximity superconductivity. Therefore, this progress in ferromagnetic semiconductors is a breakthrough in semiconductor physics involving unconventional superconducting pairing.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2017

Hidden peculiar magnetic anisotropy at the interface in a ferromagnetic perovskite-oxide heterostructure

Understanding and controlling the interfacial magnetic properties of ferromagnetic thin films are crucial for spintronic device applications. However, using conventional magnetometry, it is difficult to detect them separately from the bulk properties. Here, by utilizing tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance in a single-barrier heterostructure composed of La0.6Sr0.4MnO3 (LSMO)/ LaAlO3 (LAO)/ Nb-doped SrTiO3 (001), we reveal the presence of a peculiar strong two-fold magnetic anisotropy (MA) along the [110]c direction at the LSMO/LAO interface, which is not observed in bulk LSMO. This MA shows unknown behavior that the easy magnetization axis rotates by 90° at an energy of 0.2 eV below the Fermi level in LSMO. We attribute this phenomenon to the transition between the eg and t2g bands at the LSMO interface. Our finding and approach to understanding the energy dependence of the MA demonstrate a new possibility of efficient control of the interfacial magnetic properties by controlling the band structures of oxide heterostructures.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2017

A new class of ferromagnetic semiconductors with high Curie temperatures

Ferromagnetic semiconductors (FMSs), which have the properties and functionalities of both semiconductors and ferromagnets, provide fascinating opportunities for basic research in condensed matter physics and device applications. Over the past two decades, however, intensive studies on various FMS materials, inspired by the influential mean-field Zener (MFZ) model have failed to realise reliable FMSs that have a high Curie temperature (Tc > 300 K), good compatibility with semiconductor electronics, and characteristics superior to those of their non-magnetic host semiconductors. Here, we demonstrate a new n type Fe-doped narrow-gap III-V FMS, (In,Fe)Sb, in which ferromagnetic order is induced by electron carriers, and its Tc is unexpectedly high, reaching ~335 K at a modest Fe concentration of 16%. Furthermore, we show that by utilizing the large anomalous Hall effect of (In,Fe)Sb at room temperature, it is possible to obtain a Hall sensor with a very high sensitivity that surpasses that of the best commercially available InSb Hall sensor devices. Our results reveal a new design rule of FMSs that is not expected from the conventional MFZ model. (This work was presented at the JSAP Spring meeting, presentation No. E15a-501-2: https://confit.atlas.jp/guide/event/jsap2017s/subject/15a-501-2/advanced)

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Observation of spontaneous spin-splitting in the band structure of an n-type zinc-blende ferromagnetic semiconductor

Large spin splitting in the conduction band (CB) and valence band (VB) of ferromagnetic semiconductors (FMSs), predicted by the influential mean-field Zener model[1,2] and assumed in many spintronic device proposals[3-8], has never been observed in the mainstream p-type Mn-doped FMSs[9-15]. Here using tunnelling spectroscopy in Esaki-diode structures, we report the observation of such a large spontaneous spin-splitting energy (ΔE = 31.7 - 50 meV) in the CB bottom of n-type FMS (In,Fe)As, which is surprising considering the very weak s-d exchange interaction reported in several zinc-blende (ZB) type semiconductors[16,17]. The mean-field Zener model also fails to explain consistently the ferromagnetism and the spin splitting energy ΔE of (In,Fe)As, because we found that the Curie temperature (TC) values calculated using the observed ΔE are much lower than the experimental TC by a factor of 400. These results urge the need for a more sophisticated theory of FMSs. Furthermore, bias-dependent tunnelling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) reveals the magnetic anisotropy of each component of the (In,Fe)As band structure [CB, VB, and impurity band (IB)]. The results suggest that the energy range of IB overlaps with the CB bottom or VB top, which may be important to understand the strong s-d exchange interaction in (In,Fe)As[18,19].

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

Growth and characterization of insulating ferromagnetic semiconductor (Al,Fe)Sb

We investigate the crystal structure, transport and magnetic properties of Fe-doped ferromagnetic semiconductor (Al1-x,Fex)Sb thin films up to x = 14% grown by molecular beam epitaxy. All the samples show p-type conduction at room temperature and insulating behavior at low temperature. The (Al1-x,Fex)Sb thin films with x lower or equal to 10% maintain the zinc blende crystal structure of the host material AlSb. The (Al1-x,Fex)Sb thin film with x = 10% shows intrinsic ferromagnetism with a Curie temperature (TC) of 40 K. In the (Al1-x,Fex)Sb thin film with x = 14%, a sudden drop of mobility and TC was observed, which may be due to microscopic phase separation. The observation of ferromagnetism in (Al,Fe)Sb paves the way to realize a spin-filtering tunnel barrier that is compatible with well-established III-V semiconductor devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗