journal article·2024-05-28Open access

Effect of Surface Oxidation and Crystal Thickness on the Magnetic Properties and Magnetic Domain Structures of Cr2Ge2Te6

Joachim Dahl Thomsen, Myung-Geun Han, Aubrey N. Penn, Alexandre C. Foucher, Michael Geiwitz, Kenneth Stephen Burch, Lukas Dekanovsky, Zdeněk Sofer, Yu Liu, Cedomir Petrovic, Frances M. Ross, Yimei Zhu, Prineha Narang

ACS Nano· Volume 18· Issue 21

Abstract

(CGT), show promise for memory and logic applications. This is due to their broadly tunable magnetic properties and the presence of topological magnetic features such as skyrmionic bubbles. A systematic study of thickness and oxidation effects on magnetic domain structures is important for designing devices and vdW heterostructures for practical applications. Here, we investigate thickness effects on magnetic properties, magnetic domains, and bubbles in oxidation-controlled CGT crystals. We find that CGT exposed to ambient conditions for 5 days forms an oxide layer approximately 5 nm thick. This oxidation leads to a significant increase in the oxidation state of the Cr ions, indicating a change in local magnetic properties. This is supported by real-space magnetic texture imaging through Lorentz transmission electron microscopy. By comparing the thickness-dependent saturation field of oxidized and pristine crystals, we find that oxidation leads to a nonmagnetic surface layer that is thicker than the oxide layer alone. We also find that the stripe domain width and skyrmionic bubble size are strongly affected by the crystal thickness in pristine crystals. These findings underscore the impact of thickness and surface oxidation on the properties of CGT, such as saturation field and domain/skyrmionic bubble size, and suggest a pathway for manipulating magnetic properties through a controlled oxidation process.
Source: openalex_inverted_index · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: 2D Materials and Applications · Magnetic properties of thin films · Advanced Memory and Neural Computing

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Division of Physical Sciences, College of Letters and Science, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, United States

Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States

Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science Division, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, United States

MIT.nano, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States

Department of Physics, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts 02467, United States

Department of Inorganic Chemistry, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague, Technická 5, Prague 6 166 28, Czech Republic

Center for Correlated Matter and School of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, People’s Republic of China

Shanghai Key Laboratory of Material Frontiers Research in Extreme Environments (MFree), Shanghai Advanced Research in Physical Sciences (SHARPS), Pudong, Shanghai 201203, People’s Republic of China

Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, United States

Funding

Basic Energy Sciences · Air Force Office of Scientific Research · Materials Sciences and Engineering Division · Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems · John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation

References (55)

Show source-provided references
1. 10.1038/s41565-019-0438-610.1038/s41565-019-0438-6 ↗
2. 10.1038/s41586-018-0631-z10.1038/s41586-018-0631-z ↗
3. 10.1038/s42254-019-0110-y10.1038/s42254-019-0110-y ↗
4. 10.1126/science.114579910.1126/science.1145799 ↗
5. 10.1038/natrevmats.2017.3110.1038/natrevmats.2017.31 ↗
6. 10.1038/nature2206010.1038/nature22060 ↗
7. 10.7567/JJAP.55.03300110.7567/JJAP.55.033001 ↗
8. 10.1088/0953-8984/7/1/00810.1088/0953-8984/7/1/008 ↗
9. 10.1038/s41699-022-00315-710.1038/s41699-022-00315-7 ↗
10. 10.1088/2053-1583/aa703410.1088/2053-1583/aa7034 ↗
11. 10.1038/s41928-020-0427-710.1038/s41928-020-0427-7 ↗
12. 10.1002/adma.20200858610.1002/adma.202008586 ↗
13. 10.1021/acsami.7b1479510.1021/acsami.7b14795 ↗
14. 10.1063/1.501656810.1063/1.5016568 ↗
15. 10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.2.05100410.1103/PhysRevMaterials.2.051004 ↗
16. 10.1088/2053-1583/3/2/02503510.1088/2053-1583/3/2/025035 ↗
17. 10.1038/nnano.2013.24310.1038/nnano.2013.243 ↗
18. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.9b0284910.1021/acs.nanolett.9b02849 ↗
19. 10.1002/adfm.20221420310.1002/adfm.202214203 ↗
20. 10.1103/PhysRevLett.127.06720110.1103/PhysRevLett.127.067201 ↗
21. 10.1038/s41467-020-17566-x10.1038/s41467-020-17566-x ↗
22. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.8b0331510.1021/acs.nanolett.8b03315 ↗
23. 10.1073/pnas.200034711710.1073/pnas.2000347117 ↗
24. 10.1038/s41565-018-0186-z10.1038/s41565-018-0186-z ↗
25. 10.1016/0304-3991(96)00020-410.1016/0304-3991(96)00020-4 ↗
26. 10.1063/5.000646210.1063/5.0006462 ↗
27. 10.1016/j.ultramic.2006.02.00510.1016/j.ultramic.2006.02.005 ↗
28. 10.1016/j.ultramic.2012.03.00210.1016/j.ultramic.2012.03.002 ↗
29. 10.1002/smll.20120291910.1002/smll.201202919 ↗
30. 10.1007/s11249-011-9774-x10.1007/s11249-011-9774-x ↗
31. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c0030310.1021/acs.nanolett.3c00303 ↗
32. 10.1103/PhysRevB.89.09441110.1103/PhysRevB.89.094411 ↗
33. 10.1103/PhysRevLett.114.17720310.1103/PhysRevLett.114.177203 ↗
34. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c0226810.1021/acs.nanolett.2c02268 ↗
35. 10.1038/ncomms419810.1038/ncomms4198 ↗
36. 10.1002/adma.20200204310.1002/adma.202002043 ↗
37. 10.1038/nmat291610.1038/nmat2916 ↗
38. 10.1038/nnano.2014.5210.1038/nnano.2014.52 ↗
39. 10.1021/acs.nanolett.8b0280610.1021/acs.nanolett.8b02806 ↗
40. 10.1021/acsanm.2c0547910.1021/acsanm.2c05479 ↗
41. 10.1088/1361-6528/ab0a3710.1088/1361-6528/ab0a37 ↗
42. 10.1103/PhysRev.70.96510.1103/PhysRev.70.965 ↗
43. Kooy C. · Philips Res. Rep. · 1960 · 15 · 7
44. Hubert A. · 2008
45. 10.1002/adma.20211058310.1002/adma.202110583 ↗
46. 10.1063/1.496159210.1063/1.4961592 ↗
47. 10.1103/PhysRevB.98.12541610.1103/PhysRevB.98.125416 ↗
48. 10.1063/1.510987510.1063/1.5109875 ↗
49. 10.1021/acsami.8b1100310.1021/acsami.8b11003 ↗
50. 10.1038/s41563-023-01520-510.1038/s41563-023-01520-5 ↗
51. 10.1021/acsnano.2c0040510.1021/acsnano.2c00405 ↗
52. 10.1021/acsnano.8b0897910.1021/acsnano.8b08979 ↗
53. 10.1016/j.ultramic.2006.10.00410.1016/j.ultramic.2006.10.004 ↗
54. De La Peña, F.; Prestat, E.; Fauske, V. T.; Burdet, P.; Lähnemann, J.; Jokubauskas, P.; Furnival, T.; Nord, M.; Ostasevicius, T.; MacArthur, K. E.; Johnstone, D. N.; Sarahan, M.; Aarholt, T.; Taillon, J.; Migunov, V.; Eljarrat, A.; Caron, J.; Francis, C.; Nemoto, T.; Poon, T. hyperspy/hyperspy:Hyperspy v.1.7.3; Zenodo, 2022.
55. 10.1107/S002188981103897010.1107/S0021889811038970 ↗