Dissipationless Layertronics in Axion Insulator $\rm{MnBi_2Te_4}$

TL;DR

This paper proposes a dissipationless layertronic platform in antiferromagnetic MnBi2Te4, utilizing topological layer degrees of freedom and chiral domain wall modes for high-performance, low-energy electronic devices.

Contribution

It introduces a novel dissipationless layertronic approach in MnBi2Te4, enabling device functionalities like filtering, switching, and reversing layers using chiral domain wall modes.

Findings

Layertronic devices outperform spintronics and valleytronics in efficiency.

Chiral domain wall modes enable dissipationless layer manipulation.

Proposes a layer reverser device analogous to a transistor.

Abstract

Surface electrons in axion insulators are endowed with a topological layer degree of freedom followed by exotic transport phenomena, e.g., the layer Hall effect [Gao et al., Nature 595, 521 (2021)]. Here, we propose that such a layer degree of freedom can be manipulated in a dissipationless way based on the antiferromagnetic $\rm{MnBi_2Te_4}$ with tailored domain structure. This makes $\rm{MnBi_2Te_4}$ a versatile platform to exploit the "layertronics" to encode, process, and store information. Importantly, the layer filter, layer valve, and layer reverser devices can be achieved using the layer-locked chiral domain wall modes. The dissipationless nature of the domain wall modes makes the performance of the layertronic-devices superior to those in spintronics and valleytronics. Specifically, the layer reverser, a layer version of Datta-Das transistor, also fills up the blank in designing the valley reverser in valleytronics. Our work sheds light on constructing new generation electronic devices with high performance and low energy consumption in the framework of layertronics.