Enhanced ferromagnetism in cylindrically confined MnAs nanocrystals embedded in wurtzite GaAs nanowire shells

TL;DR

This study demonstrates a nearly 30% increase in the ferromagnetic transition temperature of MnAs nanocrystals embedded in GaAs nanowires due to tensile strain, achieved through a novel nanotube geometry and phase separation.

Contribution

It introduces a new method of strain engineering in MnAs nanocrystals within nanowires, significantly enhancing their ferromagnetic transition temperature.

Findings

Transition temperature increased above 400 K from 313 K in bulk MnAs.

Tensile strain prevents structural phase transition in MnAs.

First-principles calculations support experimental results.

Abstract

Nearly 30% increase of the ferromagnetic phase transition temperature has been achieved in strained MnAs nanocrystals embedded in a wurtzite GaAs matrix. Wurtzite GaAs exerts tensile stress on hexagonal MnAs nanocrystals, preventing a hexagonal to orthorhombic structural phase transition, which in the bulk MnAs is combined with the magnetic one. This effect results in a remarkable shift of the magneto-structural phase transition temperature from 313 K in the bulk MnAs to above 400 K in the tensely strained MnAs nanocrystals. This finding is corroborated by the state of the art transmission electron microscopy, sensitive magnetometry and the first-principles calculations. The effect relies in defining a nanotube geometry of molecular beam epitaxy grown core-multishell wurtzite (Ga,In)As/(Ga,Al)As/(Ga,Mn)As/GaAs nanowires where the MnAs nanocrystals are formed during the thermal-treatment-induced phase separation of wurtzite (Ga,Mn)As into the GaAs:MnAs granular system. Such a unique combination of two types of hexagonal lattices provides possibility of attaining quasi-hydrostatic tensile strain in MnAs (impossible otherwise), leading to the substantial ferromagnetic phase transition temperature increase in this compound.