Proximity effect between graphene and 2D anti-ferromagnetic insulator α-RuCl3

ORAL

Abstract

Proximity effects attempting to combine electronic properties of graphene with exotic phenomena in other 2D van der Waals materials have been a central focus of condensed matter research for the past decade. To date, much work has been done studying proximity effects between graphene and ferromagnetic insulators, but little is known experimentally about the coupling between graphene and anti-ferromagnetic insulators. We report transport results from proximity devices consisting of graphene and α-RuCl3, a layered anti-ferromagnetic Mott insulator predicted to host a so-called Kitaev quantum spin liquid. Upon cooling the device, the derivative of resistance with temperature shows a peak-dip feature. Depending on the gate voltage, this feature is seen anywhere from 35-50K, much higher than the Neel temperature of 14K. This could indicate a magnetic phase transition in the heterostructure.

*This work was supported by the Department of Energy under the Early Career Award program, award number #DE-SC0018115

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Presenters

  • Edward Seifert

    • Carnegie Mellon Univ

Authors

  • Edward Seifert

    • Carnegie Mellon Univ

  • Devashish P Gopalan

    • Carnegie Mellon Univ

  • Zaiyao Fei

    • University of Washington
    • Physics, University of Washington

  • Xiaodong Xu

    • University of Washington
    • Physics, University of Washington

  • David Mandrus

    • Physics, University of Tennessee
    • Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Tennessee
    • Department of Materials Science & Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
    • The University of Tennesse, Knoxville
    • University of Tennessee
    • Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee
    • Oak Ridge National Laboratory
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Tennessee Knoxville
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Tennessee
    • University of Tennessee, Knoxville
    • Material Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
    • Material Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Lab

  • Benjamin Hunt

    • Carnegie Mellon Univ
    • Physics Department, Carnegie Mellon University
    • Carnegie Mellon University
    • Department of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University