Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy
Abstract The layered crystal structure of Cr2Ge2Te6 shows ferromagnetic ordering at the two‐dimensional limit, which holds promise for spintronic applications. However, external voltage pulses can trigger amorphization of the material in nanoscale electronic devices, and it is unclear whether the lo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Advanced Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202302444 |
| _version_ | 1797742710743891968 |
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| author | Xiaozhe Wang Suyang Sun Jiang‐Jing Wang Shuang Li Jian Zhou Oktay Aktas Ming Xu Volker L. Deringer Riccardo Mazzarello En Ma Wei Zhang |
| author_facet | Xiaozhe Wang Suyang Sun Jiang‐Jing Wang Shuang Li Jian Zhou Oktay Aktas Ming Xu Volker L. Deringer Riccardo Mazzarello En Ma Wei Zhang |
| author_sort | Xiaozhe Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The layered crystal structure of Cr2Ge2Te6 shows ferromagnetic ordering at the two‐dimensional limit, which holds promise for spintronic applications. However, external voltage pulses can trigger amorphization of the material in nanoscale electronic devices, and it is unclear whether the loss of structural ordering leads to a change in magnetic properties. Here, it is demonstrated that Cr2Ge2Te6 preserves the spin‐polarized nature in the amorphous phase, but undergoes a magnetic transition to a spin glass state below 20 K. Quantum‐mechanical computations reveal the microscopic origin of this transition in spin configuration: it is due to strong distortions of the CrTeCr bonds, connecting chromium‐centered octahedra, and to the overall increase in disorder upon amorphization. The tunable magnetic properties of Cr2Ge2Te6 can be exploited for multifunctional, magnetic phase‐change devices that switch between crystalline and amorphous states. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:44:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ebcb4332717a4378a0aaff745538295d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2198-3844 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:44:28Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Advanced Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-ebcb4332717a4378a0aaff745538295d2023-08-16T02:23:01ZengWileyAdvanced Science2198-38442023-08-011023n/an/a10.1002/advs.202302444Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change AlloyXiaozhe Wang0Suyang Sun1Jiang‐Jing Wang2Shuang Li3Jian Zhou4Oktay Aktas5Ming Xu6Volker L. Deringer7Riccardo Mazzarello8En Ma9Wei Zhang10Center for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaState Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaWuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics School of Integrated Circuits Huazhong University of Science and Technology Wuhan 430074 ChinaDepartment of Chemistry Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory University of Oxford Oxford OX1 3QR UKDepartment of Physics Sapienza University of Rome Rome 00185 ItalyCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaCenter for Alloy Innovation and Design (CAID) State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 ChinaAbstract The layered crystal structure of Cr2Ge2Te6 shows ferromagnetic ordering at the two‐dimensional limit, which holds promise for spintronic applications. However, external voltage pulses can trigger amorphization of the material in nanoscale electronic devices, and it is unclear whether the loss of structural ordering leads to a change in magnetic properties. Here, it is demonstrated that Cr2Ge2Te6 preserves the spin‐polarized nature in the amorphous phase, but undergoes a magnetic transition to a spin glass state below 20 K. Quantum‐mechanical computations reveal the microscopic origin of this transition in spin configuration: it is due to strong distortions of the CrTeCr bonds, connecting chromium‐centered octahedra, and to the overall increase in disorder upon amorphization. The tunable magnetic properties of Cr2Ge2Te6 can be exploited for multifunctional, magnetic phase‐change devices that switch between crystalline and amorphous states.https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202302444amorphous phasemagnetic phase‐change materialsphase‐change memoryspin glass |
| spellingShingle | Xiaozhe Wang Suyang Sun Jiang‐Jing Wang Shuang Li Jian Zhou Oktay Aktas Ming Xu Volker L. Deringer Riccardo Mazzarello En Ma Wei Zhang Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy Advanced Science amorphous phase magnetic phase‐change materials phase‐change memory spin glass |
| title | Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy |
| title_full | Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy |
| title_fullStr | Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy |
| title_full_unstemmed | Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy |
| title_short | Spin Glass Behavior in Amorphous Cr2Ge2Te6 Phase‐Change Alloy |
| title_sort | spin glass behavior in amorphous cr2ge2te6 phase change alloy |
| topic | amorphous phase magnetic phase‐change materials phase‐change memory spin glass |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202302444 |
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