Spintronic Properties of Van der Waals Magnetic Materials

Two-dimensional van der Waals magnetic materials have emerged as promising building blocks for spintronic applications owing to their atomically defined interfaces, tunable magnetic order and integration with other layered materials. These systems exhibit a unique combination of spin–orbit coupling, strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and high Curie temperatures that can persist down to a few atomic layers. The weak interlayer bonding of van der Waals crystals allows precise control of magnetic anisotropy by varying composition or by interfacial engineering, enabling the electrical or mechanical modulation of spin textures and the stabilisation of topologically non-trivial states such as magnetic skyrmions. When incorporated into heterostructures, these materials support large tunnelling magnetoresistance and spin-orbit torques, facilitating low-power switching and efficient spin current generation. Advances in wafer-scale growth and exfoliation techniques have further paved the way for scalable spintronic devices with room-temperature operation, while theoretical and spectroscopic studies continue to deepen understanding of the exchange interactions and anisotropy mechanisms that underpin their performance.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated that interfacial engineering in iron-based van der Waals magnets can elevate Curie temperatures well above ambient conditions. By optimising the local electronic states at the interface of Fe4GeTe2 films, Curie temperatures exceeding 500 K have been achieved alongside reversible tuning of magnetic anisotropy between in-plane and out-of-plane orientations without introducing phase disorder. Similarly, investigations into an intrinsic ferromagnetic crystal Fe3GaTe2 have revealed a record-high Curie temperature near 380 K, coupled with a large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy energy density that surpasses conventional ferromagnetic films. These materials exhibit robust anomalous Hall effects and direct imaging of magnetic domains, highlighting their suitability for room-temperature device integration. Together, these findings illustrate the potential of interface-tailored van der Waals magnets to deliver high-temperature stability and strong anisotropic behaviour essential for next-generation spintronic architectures.

Spintronic Properties of Van der Waals Magnetic Materials publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in spintronic properties of van der waals magnetic materials across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Van der Waals materials: Layered crystals held together by weak interlayer forces, allowing exfoliation into atomically thin sheets.

Spintronics: Field of electronics exploiting electron spin as well as charge to encode and process information.

Magnetic anisotropy: Directional dependence of a material’s magnetic properties, determining easy and hard axes of magnetisation.

Tunnelling magnetoresistance: Change in electrical resistance of a magnetic tunnel junction depending on the relative alignment of electrode magnetisations.

Skyrmion: Topologically protected, vortex-like spin whirl that can be stabilised in certain magnetic materials.

References

1. Room‐temperature tunable tunneling magnetoresistance in Fe3GaTe2/WSe2/Fe3GaTe2 van der Waals heterostructures. InfoMat (2024).
2. Ferromagnetic Elements in Two‐Dimensional Materials: 2D Magnets and Beyond. Advanced Functional Materials (2023).
3. Interfacial engineering of ferromagnetism in wafer-scale van der Waals Fe4GeTe2 far above room temperature. Nature Communications (2023).
4. Above-room-temperature strong intrinsic ferromagnetism in 2D van der Waals Fe3GaTe2 with large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Nature Communications (2022).
5. van der Waals Magnets: Material Family, Detection and Modulation of Magnetism, and Perspective in Spintronics. Advanced Science (2020).