Superexchange dominates in magnetic topological insulators

Abstract

It has been suggested that the enlarged spin susceptibility in topological insulators, described by Van Vleck's formalism, accounts for the ferromagnetism of bismuth-antimony topological chalcogenides doped with transition metal impurities. In contrast, earlier studies of HgTe and related topological systems pointed out that the interband analog of the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interaction (the Bloembergen-Rowland mechanism) leads to antiferromagnetic coupling between pairs of localized spins. Here, we critically revisit these two approaches, show their shortcomings, and elucidate why the magnitude of the interband contribution is small even in topological systems. From the proposed theoretical approach and our computational studies of magnetism in Mn-doped HgTe and CdTe, we conclude that, in the absence of band carriers, the superexchange dominates, and its sign depends on the coordination and charge state of magnetic impurities rather than on the topological class of the host material.

arXiv comment12 pages, 4 figures; new version contains extended Supplemental Material

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• Orbital order and ferromagnetism in LaMnO3 doped with Ga
• Engineering axion insulator phase in superlattices with inversion symmetry breaking
• Unprotected edge modes in quantum spin Hall insulator candidate materials
• Double-helix magnetic order in CrAs with Pnma space group
• CdTe and HgTe doped with V, Cr, and Mn -- prospects for the quantum anomalous Hall effect
• Distinguishing Surface and Bulk Electromagnetism via Their Dynamics in an Intrinsic Magnetic Topological Insulator
• Fermi level dependence of magnetism and magnetotransport in the magnetic topological insulators Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$ and BiSbTe${}_3$ containing self-organized MnBi${}_2$Te${}_4$ septuple layers
• Tight-binding theory of spin-spin interactions, Curie temperatures, and quantum Hall effects in topological (Hg,Cr)Te in comparison to non-topological (Zn,Cr)Te, and (Ga,Mn)N
• Topological phase diagram of Pb1-xSnxSe1-yTey
• Revisiting magnetic exchange interactions in transition metal doped Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$ using DFT+MFT
• Electric field manipulation of magnetization in an insulating dilute ferromagnet through piezoelectromagnetic coupling
• From narrow-gap and semimagnetic semiconductors to spintronics and topological matter: a life with spins