Integrating spin glass dynamics into nanomechanical resonators

Abstract

Spin glasses are non-equilibrium magnetic systems with pronounced slow relaxation, ageing, and chaotic, synaptic-like properties, whose unique history-dependent dynamics have remained difficult to harness in functional devices. Two-dimensional van der Waals spin-glass magnets offer a route to overcome this limitation by allowing controlled coupling between magnetic and mechanical degrees of freedom. Here, we demonstrate the integration of a spin-glass functionality in nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) using thin exfoliated NbFeTe${}_2$ films, which establishes a robust spin-glass state down to a few tens of nanometer-thick layers. Using cryogenic magnetic force microscopy, we reveal characteristic slow, hour-scale macroscopic magnetic relaxation, associated with glassy reorganisation of its magnetic domain clusters. Incorporation of thin NbFeTe${}_2$ into membrane resonators allows the transduction of this glassy magnetic domain relaxation into strain, shifting their mechanical resonance frequency. This provides a functional nanomechanical readout of spin-glass dynamics and establishes a versatile platform for integrating frustrated magnetism into NEMS.