Abstract
The interplay between nontrivial band topology and layered antiferromagnetism in MnBi2Te4 has opened a new avenue for exploring topological phases of matter1,2,3,4. The quantum anomalous Hall effect5 and axion insulator state6 have been observed in odd and even number layers of MnBi2Te4, and the quantum metric nonlinear Hall effect7,8 has been shown to exist in this topological antiferromagnet. The rich and complex antiferromagnetic spin dynamics in MnBi2Te4 is expected to generate new quantum anomalous Hall phenomena that are absent in conventional ferromagnetic topological insulators, but experimental observations are still unknown. Here we fabricate a device of 7-septuple-layer MnBi2Te4 covered with an AlOx capping layer, which enables the investigation of antiferromagnetic quantum anomalous Hall effect over wide parameter spaces. By tuning the gate voltage and perpendicular magnetic field, we uncover a cascade of quantum phase transitions that can be attributed to the influence of complex spin configurations on edge state transport. Furthermore, we find that an in-plane magnetic field enhances both the coercive field and the exchange gap of the surface state, in contrast to that in the ferromagnetic quantum anomalous Hall state. Combined with numerical simulations, we propose that these peculiar features arise from the spin flip and flop transitions that are inherent to a van der Waals antiferromagnet. The versatile tunability of the quantum anomalous Hall effect in MnBi2Te4 paves the way for potential applications in topological antiferromagnetic spintronics9,10.
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Acknowledgements
Yayu Wang was supported the Basic Science Center Project of Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 52388201), the Innovation program for Quantum Science and Technology (grant no. 2021ZD0302502) and the New Cornerstone Science Foundation through the New Cornerstone Investigator Program and the XPLORER PRIZE. C.L. was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 12274453), Beijing Nova Program (grant no. 20240484574), and the Open Research Fund Program of the State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics (grant no. KF202204). J.Z. was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 12274252 and 12350404) and the National Key Research and Development Program of China (grant no. 2024YFA1409100). We thank W. Wang, S. Yang and H. Yang for their discussions.
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Yayu Wang, C.L. and J.Z. supervised the research. Z.L., Yongchao Wang, Yongqian Wang, Yaoxin Li, Y.F., B.F. and S.Y. fabricated the devices and performed the transport measurements. Yongchao Wang, L.X. and Yuetan Li grew the MnBi2Te4 crystals. Z.D. performed the TEM measurements. Z.L., M.M. and W.J. performed the simulation of the spin configurations. W.-H.D. and Y.X. performed the first-principles calculation. Z.L., C.L., J.Z. and Yayu Wang prepared the paper with comments from all authors.
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Extended data figures and tables
Extended Data Fig. 1 Transport data of the 7SL MnBi2Te4 device at T = 0.02 K.
a, Photograph of the measured device. The scale bar is 10 μm. b, Colour map of ρyx as a function of Hz and Vg at T = 0.02 K. c, The μ0Hz dependent ρxx (blue) and ρyx (red) curves at the CNP measured by using the Keithley 6221-2182 in the delta mode with a current of 10 nA and a delay of 0.027 s, which demonstrates ρxx = 0.012 h/e2 and ρyx = 0.988 h/e2 at μ0Hz = 0 T. d, The evolution of ρxx and ρyx as a function of Vg at μ0Hz = 0, 1, and 2 T.
Extended Data Fig. 2 Individual Hz-dependent ρxx and ρyx curves for varied Ts at Vg = 30 V.
The upper and lower panels are the ρyx (red) and ρxx (blue) curves, respectively, from T = 0.02 K to T = 23 K. The one-step transition in the ground state is replaced by much more complex variations at higher T.
Extended Data Fig. 3 Colour map of σxx as a function of T and Vg at various μ0Hz.
The Vg dependent transport data are measured at fixed μ0Hz and selected Ts (T = 0.02, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17 and 20 K). The thermal activation gap size Δ is extracted using the Arrhenius formula lnσxx = −Δ/2kBT, where kB represents the Boltzmann constant.
Extended Data Fig. 4 Complete data of μ0Hz dependent ρyx at varied Ts and μ0Hx.
The measurements were conducted by sweeping Hz at different Hx at fixed T. The measuring sequence is from 0.01 K to 22 K. All data taken at Vg = 30 V.
Extended Data Fig. 5 The hysteresis manipulated by in-plane magnetic field at different Ts.
a-f, The ρyx versus Hz loops show that the coercivity increases with the application of Hx at T ≤ 18 K. g-h, Near the Néel temperature (T = 20 and 22 K), the trend is reversed and the coercivity decreases with the application of Hx. All data taken at Vg = 30 V.
Extended Data Fig. 6 Colour map of σxx in the parameter space of μ0Hz and Vg at T = 0.2 K with increasing μ0Hx.
The measurements were conducted by fixing μ0Hx and sweeping Vg with μ0Hz varied from +2.5 T to −1.5 T. As μ0Hx increases, the QAH region indicated by blue colour is enlarged and the sudden gap increase at μ0Hz ≈ 2.2 T becomes smoother. When μ0Hx is increased to 2 T, the AFM to SSF transition nearly disappears.
Extended Data Fig. 7 The μ0Hz dependence of ρxx and ρyx at varied μ0Hx.
The application of Hx smears out the transition at H2 in both ρxx (upper panel) and ρyx (lower panel). Meanwhile, the hysteresis is increased, accompanied by a sharper transition at H1. All data taken at Vg = 30 V.
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Lian, Z., Wang, Y., Wang, Y. et al. Antiferromagnetic quantum anomalous Hall effect under spin flips and flops. Nature 641, 70–75 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08860-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08860-z
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