arXiv subjects

Yuan Ping Feng

Publications and source records attributed to Yuan Ping Feng.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

Room temperature ferromagnetism of monolayer chromium telluride with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

The realization of long-range magnetic ordering in two-dimensional (2D) systems can potentially revolutionize next-generation information technology. Here, we report the successful fabrication of crystalline Cr3Te4 monolayers with room temperature ferromagnetism. Using molecular beam epitaxy, the growth of 2D Cr3Te4 films with monolayer thickness is demonstrated at low substrate temperatures (~100C), compatible with Si CMOS technology. X-ray magnetic circular dichroism measurements reveal a Curie temperature (Tc) of ~344 K for the Cr3Te4 monolayer with an out-of-plane magnetic easy axis, which decreases to ~240 K for the thicker film (~ 7 nm) with an in-plane easy axis. The enhancement of ferromagnetic coupling and the magnetic anisotropy transition is ascribed to interfacial effects, in particular the orbital overlap at the monolayer Cr3Te4/graphite interface, supported by density-functional theory calculations. This work sheds light on the low-temperature scalable growth of 2D nonlayered materials with room temperature ferromagnetism for new magnetic and spintronic devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Recent progress and challenges in magnetic tunnel junctions with 2D materials for spintronic applications

As Moore's law is gradually losing its effectiveness, developing alternative high-speed and low-energy-consuming information technology with post-silicon advanced materials is urgently needed. The successful application of tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) in magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) has given rise to a tremendous economic impact on magnetic informatics, including MRAM, radio-frequency sensors, microwave generators and neuromorphic computing networks. The emergence of two-dimensional (2D) materials brings opportunities for MTJs based on 2D materials which have many attractive characters and advantages. Especially, the recently discovered intrinsic 2D ferromagnetic materials with high spin-polarization hold the promise for next-generation nanoscale MTJs. With the development of advanced 2D materials, many efforts on MTJs with 2D materials have been made both theoretically and experimentally. Various 2D materials, such as semi-metallic graphene, insulating h-BN, semiconducting MoS2, magnetic semiconducting CrI3, magnetic metallic Fe3GeTe2 and some other recently emerged 2D materials are discussed as the electrodes and/or central scattering materials of MTJs in this review. We discuss the fundamental and main issues facing MTJs, and review the current progress made with 2D MTJs, briefly comment on work with some specific 2D materials, and highlight how they address the current challenges in MTJs, and finally offer an outlook and perspective of 2D MTJs.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Tunable Rashba spin-orbit coupling and its interplay with multiorbital effect and magnetic ordering at oxide interfaces

The complex oxide heterostructures such as LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (LAO/STO) interface are paradigmatic platforms to explore emerging multi-degrees of freedom coupling and the associated exotic phenomena. In this study, we reveal the effects of multiorbital and magnetic ordering on Rashba spin-orbit coupling (SOC) at the LAO/STO (001) interface. Based on first-principles calculations, we show that the Rashba spin splitting near the conduction band edge can be tuned substantially by the interfacial insulator-metal transition due to the multiorbital effect of the lowest t_2g bands. We further unravel a competition between Rashba SOC and intrinsic magnetism, in which the Rashba SOC induced spin polarization is suppressed by the interfacial magnetic ordering. These results deepen our understanding of intricate electronic and magnetic reconstruction at the perovskite oxide interfaces and shed light on the engineering of oxide heterostructures for all-oxides-based spintronic devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Topological Hall Effect and Skyrmion-like Bubbles at a Charge-transfer Interface

Exploring exotic interface magnetism due to charge transfer and strong spin-orbit coupling has profound application in future development of spintronic memory. Here, the emergence, tuning and interpretation of hump-shape Hall Effect from a CaMnO3/CaIrO3/CaMnO3 trilayer structure are studied in detail. The hump signal can be recognized as Topological Hall Effect suggesting the presence of Skyrmion-like magnetic bubbles; but the debated alternative interpretation where the signal being an artefact between two cancelling Anomalous Hall Effect loops is also discussed. Firstly, by tilting the magnetic field direction, the evolution of Hall signal suggests transformation of the bubbles topology into a more trivial kind. Secondly, by varying the thickness of CaMnO3, the optimal thicknesses for the hump signal emergence are found, suggesting a tuning of charge transfer fraction. Using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, a stacking fault is also identified, which distinguishes the top and bottom CaMnO3/CaIrO3 interfaces in terms of charge transfer fraction and possible interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction. Finally, a spin-transfer torque experiment revealed a low threshold current density of ~10^9 A/m^2 for initiating the motion of bubbles. This discovery opens a possible route for integrating Skyrmions with antiferromagnetic spintronics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2020

Tailoring Magnetic Anisotropy in Cr$_2$Ge$_2$Te$_6$ by Electrostatic Gating

Electrical control of magnetism of a ferromagnetic semiconductor offers exciting prospects for future spintronic devices for processing and storing information. Here, we report observation of electrically modulated magnetic phase transition and magnetic anisotropy in thin crystal of Cr$_2$Ge$_2$Te$_6$ (CGT), a layered ferromagnetic semiconductor. We show that heavily electron-doped ($\sim$ $10^{14}$ cm$^{-2}$) CGT in an electric double-layer transistor device is found to exhibit hysteresis in magnetoresistance (MR), a clear signature of ferromagnetism, at temperatures up to above 200 K, which is significantly higher than the known Curie temperature of 61 K for an undoped material. Additionally, angle-dependent MR measurements reveal that the magnetic easy axis of this new ground state lies within the layer plane in stark contrast to the case of undoped CGT, whose easy axis points in the out-of-plane direction. We propose that significant doping promotes double-exchange mechanism mediated by free carriers, prevailing over the superexchange mechanism in the insulating state. Our findings highlight that electrostatic gating of this class of materials allows not only charge flow switching but also magnetic phase switching, evidencing their potential for spintronics applications.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2019

Evidence for metallic 1T phase, 3d1 electronic configuration and charge density wave order in molecular-beam epitaxy grown monolayer VTe2

We present a combined experimental and theoretical study of monolayer VTe2 grown on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite by molecular-beam epitaxy. Using various in-situ microscopic and spectroscopic techniques, including scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy, synchrotron X-ray and angle-resolved photoemission, and X-ray absorption, together with theoretical analysis by density functional theory calculations, we demonstrate direct evidence of the metallic 1T phase and 3d1 electronic configuration in monolayer VTe2 that also features a (4 x 4) charge density wave order at low temperatures. In contrast to previous theoretical predictions, our element-specific characterization by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism rules out a ferromagnetic order intrinsic to the monolayer. Our findings provide essential knowledge necessary for understanding this interesting yet less explored metallic monolayer in the emerging family of van der Waals magnets.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Intrinsic Ferromagnetism in Electrenes

We report intrinsic ferromagnetism in monolayer electrides or electrenes, in which excess electrons act as anions. Our first-principles calculations demonstrate that magnetism in such electron-rich two-dimensional (2D) materials originates from the anionic electrons rather than partially filled d orbitals, which is fundamentally different from ferromagnetism found in other 2D intrinsic magnetic materials. Taking the honeycomb LaBr$_2$ (La$^{3+}$Br$^{-}_{2}\cdot e^{-}$) as an example, our calculations reveal that the excess electron is localized at the center of the hexagon, which leads to strong Stoner-instability of the associated states at the Fermi energy, resulting in spontaneous magnetization and formation of a local moment. The overlap of extended tails of the wave functions of these electrons mediates a long-range ferromagnetic interaction, contributing to a Curie temperature ($T_\textrm{c}$) of 235 K and a coercive field ($H_\textrm{c}$) of 0.53 T, which can be further enhanced by hole doping. The dual nature, localization and extension, of the electronic states suggests a unique mechanism in such magnetic-element-free electrenes as intrinsic 2D ferromagnets.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2019

Review of borophene and its potential applications

Since two-dimensional boron sheet (borophene) synthesized on Ag substrates in 2015, research on borophene has grown fast in the fields of condensed matter physics, chemistry, material science, and nanotechnology. Due to the unique physical and chemical properties, borophene has various potential applications. In this review, we summarize the progress on borophene with a particular emphasis on the recent advances. First, we introduce the phases of borophene by experimental synthesis and theoretical predictions. Then, the physical and chemical properties, such as mechanical, thermal, electronic, optical and superconducting properties are summarized. We also discuss in detail the utilization of the borophene for wide ranges of potential application among the alkali metal ion batteries, Li-S batteries, hydrogen storage, supercapacitor, sensor and catalytic in hydrogen evolution, oxygen reduction, oxygen evolution, and CO2 electroreduction reaction. Finally, the challenges and outlooks in this promising field are featured on the basis of its current development.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

2DMatPedia: An open computational database of two-dimensional materials from top-down and bottom-up approaches

Two-dimensional (2D) materials have been a hot research topic in the last decade, due to novel fundamental physics in the reduced dimension and appealing applications. Systematic discovery of functional 2D materials has been the focus of many studies. Here, we present a large dataset of 2D materials, with more than 6,000 monolayer structures, obtained from both top-down and bottom-up discovery procedures. First, we screened all bulk materials in the database of Materials Project for layered structures by a topology-based algorithm, and theoretically exfoliate them into monolayers. Then, we generated new 2D materials by chemical substitution of elements in known 2D materials by others from the same group in the periodic table. The structural, electronic and energetic properties of these 2D materials are consistently calculated, to provide a starting point for further material screening, data mining, data analysis and artificial intelligence applications. We present the details of computational methodology, data record and technical validation of our publicly available data (http://www.2dmatpedia.org/).

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Discovery of Hidden Classes of Layered Electrides by Extensive High-throughput Materials Screening

Despite their extraordinary properties, electrides are still a relatively unexplored class of materials with only a few compounds grown experimentally. Especially for layered electrides, the current researches mainly focus on several isostructures of Ca2N with similar interlayer two-dimensional (2D) anionic electrons. An extensive screening for different layered electrides is still missing. Here, by screening materials with anionic electrons for the structures in Materials Project, we uncover 12 existing materials as new layered electrides. Remarkably, these layered electrides demonstrate completely different properties from Ca2N. For example, unusual fully spin-polarized zero-dimensional (0D) anionic electrons are shown in metal halides with MoS2-like structures; unique one-dimensional (1D) anionic electrons are confined within the tubes of the quasi-1D structures; a coexistence of magnetic and non-magnetic anionic electrons is found in ZrCl-like structures and a new ternary Ba2LiN with both 0D and 1D anionic electrons. These materials not only significantly increase the pool of experimentally synthesizable layered electrides but also are promising to be exfoliated into advanced 2D materials.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2018

Generation of multiple plasmons in strontium niobates mediated by local field effects

Recently, an anomalous generation of multiple plasmons with large spectral weight transfer in the visible to ultraviolet range (energies below the band gap) has been experimentally observed in the insulating-like phase of oxygen-rich strontium niobium oxides (SrNbO$_{3+δ}$). Here, we investigate the ground state and dielectric properties of SrNbO$_{3+δ}$ as a function of $δ$ by means of extensive first principle calculations. We find that in the random phase approximation by taking into account the local field effects (LFEs), our calculations are able to reproduce both the unconventional multiple generations of plasmons and spectral weight transfers, consistent with experimental data. Interestingly, these unconventional plasmons can be tuned by oxygen stoichiometry as well as microscopic superstructure. This unusual predominance of LFEs in this class of materials is ascribed to the strong electronic inhomogeneity and high polarizability and paves a new path to induce multiple plasmons in the untapped visible to ultraviolet ranges of insulating-like oxides.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2017

Large valley splitting in monolayer WS$_2$ by proximity coupling to an insulating antiferromagnetic substrate

Lifting the valley degeneracy is an efficient way to achieve valley polarization for further valleytronics operations. In this work, we demonstrate that a large valley splitting can be obtained in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides by magnetic proximity coupling to an insulating antiferromagnetic substrate. As an example, we perform first-principles calculations to investigate the electronic structures of monolayer WS$_2$ on the MnO(111) surface. Our calculation results suggest that a large valley splitting of 214 meV, which corresponds to a Zeeman magnetic field of 1516 T, is induced in the valence band of monolayer WS$_2$. The magnitude of valley splitting relies on the strength of interfacial orbital hybridization, and can be continually tuned by applying an external out-of-plane pressure and in-plane strain. More interestingly, we find that both spin and valley index will flip when the magnetic ordering of MnO is reversed. Besides, owing to the sizeable Berry curvature and time-reversal symmetry breaking in the WS$_2$/MnO heterostructure, a spin and valley polarized anomalous Hall current can be generated in the presence of an in-plane electric field, which allow one to detect valleys by the electrical approach. Our results shed light on the realization of valleytronic devices using the antiferromagnetic insulator as the substrate.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2017

La interstitial defect-induced insulator-metal transition in oxide heterostructures LaAlO3/SrTiO3

Perovskite oxide interfaces have attracted tremendous research interest for their fundamental physics and promising all-oxide electronics applications. Here, based on first-principles calculations, we propose a novel surface La interstitial promoted interface insulator-metal transition in LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (110). Compared with surface oxygen vacancies, which play a determining role on the insulator-metal transition of LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (001) interfaces, we find that surface La interstitials can be more experimentally realistic and accessible for manipulation and more stable in ambient atmospheric environment. Interestingly, these surface La interstitials also induce significant spin-splitting states with Ti dyz/dxz character at conducting LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (110) interface. On the other hand, for insulating LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (110) (<4 unit cells LaAlO3 thickness), a distortion between La (Al) and O atoms is found at the LaAlO3 side, partially compensating the polarization divergence. Our results reveal the origin of metal-insulator transition in LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (110) heterostructures, and also shed light on the manipulation of the superior properties of LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (110) for new possibilities of electronic and magnetic applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2017

New crystal structure prediction of fully hydrogenated borophene by first principles calculations

New crystal structures of fully hydrogenated borophene (borophane) have been predicted by first principles calculation. Comparing with the chair-like borophane (C-boropane) that has been reported in literature, we obtained four new borophane conformers with much lower total-energy. The most stable one, washboard-like borophane (W-borophane), has energy about 113.41 meV/atom lower than C-borophane. In order to explain the relative stability of different borophane conformers, the atom configuration, density of states, charge transfer, charge density distribution and defect formation energy of B-H dimer have been calculated. The results show that the charge transfer from B atoms to H atoms is crucial for the stability of borophane. In different borophane conformers, the bonding characteristics between B and H atoms are similar, but the B-B bonds in W-borophane are much stronger than that in C-borophane or other structures. In addition, we examined the dynamical stability of borophane conformers by phonon dispersions and found that the four new conformers are all dynamically stable. Finally the mechanical properties of borophane conformers along an arbitrary direction have been discussed. W-borophane possesses unique electronic structure (Dirac cone), good stability and superior mechanical properties. W-borophane has broad perspective for nano electronic device.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Multiple Unpinned Dirac Points in Group-Va Single-layers with Phosphorene Structure

Emergent Dirac fermion states underlie many intriguing properties of graphene, and the search for them constitute one strong motivation to explore two-dimensional (2D) allotropes of other elements. Phosphorene, the ultrathin layers of black phosphorous, has been a subject of intense investigations recently, and it was found that other group-Va elements could also form 2D layers with similar puckered lattice structure. Here, by a close examination of their electronic band structure evolution, we discover two types of Dirac fermion states emerging in the low-energy spectrum. One pair of (type-I) Dirac points is sitting on high-symmetry lines, while two pairs of (type-II) Dirac points are located at generic $k$-points, with different anisotropic dispersions determined by the reduced symmetries at their locations. Such fully-unpinned (type-II) 2D Dirac points are discovered for the first time. In the absence of spin-orbit coupling, we find that each Dirac node is protected by the sublattice symmetry from gap opening, which is in turn ensured by any one of three point group symmetries. The spin-orbit coupling generally gaps the Dirac nodes, and for the type-I case, this drives the system into a quantum spin Hall insulator phase. We suggest possible ways to realize the unpinned Dirac points in strained phosphorene.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

Electronic and Transport Property of Phosphorene Nanoribbon

By combining density functional theory and nonequilibrium Green's function, we study the electronic and transport properties of monolayer black phosphorus nanoribbons (PNRs). First, we investigate the band-gap of PNRs and its modulation by the ribbon width and an external transverse electric feld. Our calculations indicate a giant Stark effect in PNRs, which can switch on transport channels of semiconducting PNRs under low bias, inducing an insulator-metal-transition. Next, we study the transport channels in PNRs via the calculations of the current density and local electron transmission pathway. In contrast to graphene and MoS_2 nanoribbons, the carrier transport channels under low bias are mainly located in the interior of both armchair and zigzag PNRs, and immune to a small amount of edge defects. Lastly, a device of the PNR-based dual-gate feld-effect-transistor, with high on/off-ratio of 10^3, is proposed based on the giant electric feld tuning effect.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Phosphorene and Transition Metal Dichalcogenide 2D Heterojunctions: Application in Excitonic Solar Cells

Using the first-principles GW-Bethe-Salpeter equation method, here we study the excited-state properties, including quasi-particle band structures and optical spectra, of phosphorene, a two-dimensional (2D) atomic layer of black phosphorus. The quasi-particle band gap of monolayer phosphorene is 2.15 eV and its optical gap is 1.6 eV, which is suitable for excitonic thin film solar cell applications. Next, this potential application is analysed by considering type-II heterostructures with single layered phosphorene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). These heterojunctions have a potential maximum power conversion efficiency of up to 12\%, which can be further enhanced to 20\% by strain engineering. Our results show that phosphorene is not only a promising new material for use in nanoscale electronics, but also in optoelectronics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

The interplay of electronic reconstructions, lattice distortions, and surface oxygen vacancies in insulator-metal transition of LaAlO$_{3}$/SrTiO$_{3}$

The mechanism responsible for the extraordinary interface conductivity of LaAlO$_{3}$ on SrTiO$_{3}$ and its insulator-metal transition remains controversial. Here, using density functional theory calculations, we establish a comprehensive and coherent picture that the interplay of electronic reconstructions, lattice distortions, and surface oxygen vacancies fully compensates the polarization potential divergence in LaAlO$_{3}$/SrTiO$_{3}$, explaining naturally the experimental observations under different conditions. While lattice distortions and a charge redistribution between LaO and AlO$_2$ sub-layers play a dominant role in insulating state, a spontaneous appearance of 1/4 oxygen vacancies per AlO$_{2}$ sub-layer at the LaAlO$_{3}$ surface accompanied by 0.5$e^{-}$ charge-transfer into the interface is responsible for interface conductivity and the discontinuous transition in LaAlO$_{3}$/SrTiO$_{3}$. Our model also explain properties of LaAlO$_{3}$/SrTiO$_{3}$ prepared with different growth conditions.

cond-mat.str-el↗