Spin filtering in CrI${}_3$ tunnel junctions

Abstract

The recently discovered magnetism of two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals crystals have attracted a lot of attention. Among these materials is CrI${}_3$ - a magnetic semiconductor exhibiting transitions between antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic orderings under the influence of an applied magnetic field. Here, using first-principles methods based on density functional theory, we explore spin-dependent transport in tunnel junctions formed of fcc Cu (111) electrodes and a CrI${}_3$ tunnel barrier. We find about 100% spin polarization of the tunneling current for a ferromagnetically-ordered four-monolayer CrI${}_3$ and tunneling magnetoresistance of about 3,000% associated with a change of magnetic ordering in CrI${}_3$. This behavior is understood in terms of the spin and wave-vector dependent evanescent states in CrI${}_3$ which control the tunneling conductance. We find a sizable charge transfer from Cu to CrI${}_3$ which adds new features to the mechanism of spin-filtering in CrI${}_3$-based tunnel junctions. Our results elucidate the mechanisms of spin filtering in CrI3 tunnel junctions and provide important insights for the design of magnetoresistive devices based on 2D magnetic crystals.

References in corpus (2)

• 2D materials and van der Waals heterostructures
• Gate-controllable magneto-optic Kerr effect in layered collinear antiferromagnets