Two-Dimensional Bipolar Magnetic Semiconductor with High Curie Temperature and Electrically Controllable Spin Polarization Realized in Exfoliated Cr(pyrazine)${}_2$ Monolayer

Abstract

Exploring two-dimensional (2D) magnetic semiconductors with room temperature magnetic ordering and electrically controllable spin polarization is a highly desirable but challenging task for nanospintronics. Here, through first principles calculations, we propose to realize such a material by exfoliating the recently synthesized organometallic layered crystal Li${}_{0.7}$[Cr(pyz)${}_2$]Cl${}_{0.7}$0.25$\cdot$(THF) (pyz = pyrazine, THF = tetrahydrofuran) [Science 370, 587 (2020)]. The feasibility of exfoliation is confirmed by the rather low exfoliation energy of 0.27 J/m${}^2$, even smaller than that of graphite. In exfoliated Cr(pyz)${}_2$ monolayer, each pyrazine ring grabs one electron from the Cr atom to become a radical anion, then a strong $d$-$p$ direct exchange magnetic interaction emerges between Cr cations and pyrazine radicals, resulting in room temperature ferrimagnetism with a Curie temperature of 342 K. Moreover, Cr(pyz)${}_2$ monolayer is revealed to be an intrinsic bipolar magnetic semiconductor where electrical doping can induce half-metallic conduction with controllable spin-polarization direction.

11 pages, 8 figures

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