Tunable valley splitting in RuClF bilayer

• Published in: Journal of magnetism and magnetic materials Vol. 597; p. 171907
• Main Authors: Dang, Xujin, Zhang, Xianbin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.05.2024
• Subjects: Band structure; Semiconductors; Valley splitting; Valleytronics; Band structure; Valleytronics; Semiconductors; Valley splitting
• ISSN: 0304-8853
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jmmm.2024.171907

•The double-layered RuClF is divided into three types of interfaces based on the different contact atoms in the upper and lower layers.•The most stable structures under different interface conditions have various sizes of spontaneous valley splittings.•A detailed study on the effect of an external electric field on the valley split values of the double-layer iron-valley material, RuClF, was conducted.•The Berry curvature of the double molecular layer was studied as well.•The anomalous Valley Hall effect is realized in the anti-ferromagnetic double molecular layer. Valleytronic devices are increasingly gaining attention for their unique capability to encode and process information by leveraging electronic valley degrees of freedom. In this study, we performed first-principle calculations to analyze the band dispersions of double-layer antiferromagnetic valley material RuClF subjected to an external electric field. Our findings show that the double-layered structure exhibits interlayer antiferromagnetic order and that the bilayer bands display opposite valley splitting. We further categorized the atomic contact surfaces of the top and bottom layers into three interface conditions: F/F, Cl/Cl, and Cl/F. Under F/F and Cl/Cl interface conditions, when the electric field changes by 0.1 V/nm, the valley splitting values change by 12.2 meV and 9.5 meV, respectively. However, under the Cl/F interface condition, the structure exhibited metallic characteristics and was as such excluded from our analysis. These findings substantiate the practicality of employing an electric field to regulate the valley splitting of the bilayer structure, offering a new control strategy for valleytronic devices.