Structural distortion induced Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in monolayer CrI3 at van der Waals heterostructures

TL;DR

This study predicts strong Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions in CrI3/Metal van der Waals heterostructures due to structural distortions and spin-orbit coupling, offering new ways to engineer magnetic properties for spintronics.

Contribution

It introduces a novel mechanism for inducing DMI in vdW heterostructures through structural distortion, differing from traditional substrate-based methods.

Findings

Strong DMI predicted in CrI3/Metal heterostructures.

Heisenberg exchange nearly doubled on Au(111).

Out-of-plane magnetism enhanced by 88% on Ir(111).

Abstract

The van der Waals (vdW) magnetic heterostructures provide flexible ways to realize particular magnetic properties that possess both scientific and practical significance. Here, by firstprinciples calculation, we predict strong Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions (DMIs) by constructing CrI3/Metal vdW heterostructures. The underlaying mechanisms are ascribed the large spin-orbital coupling (SOC) of the I atom and the structural distortion in CrI3 layer caused by interlayer interaction. This is different from the traditional way that deposit magnetic films on substrate to generate DMI, wherein DMI is dominated by interlayer hybridization and large SOC of substrates. In addition, both Heisenberg exchange and magnetic anisotropy are modulated dramatically, such as Heisenberg exchange is nearly doubled on Au(111), and the out-of-plane magnetism is enhanced by 88% on Ir(111). Our work may provide a experimentally accessible strategy to induce DMI in vdW magnetic materials, which will be helpful to the design of spintronics devices.