Growth of two dimensional antiferromagnetic CrCl<sub>3</sub> flakes down to monolayer thickness

ORAL

Abstract

The van der Waals (vdW) CrCl3 is a two-dimensional (2D) antiferromagnet. Previous reports have mainly focused on mechanically exfoliated samples, while controlled synthesis of high quality CrCl3 thin flakes is critical for their application in 2D spintronics. Here, we report the growth of ultrathin CrCl3 flakes with well-defined shapes down to monolayer thickness (~0.7 nm) via physical vapor transport technique. Confocal Raman measurements show that the CrCl3 flakes are crystalized in the monoclinic structures at room temperature, consistent with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy results. We carry out atomic force microscopy and electrical characterizations on CrCl3 flakes with various thicknesses as a function of time. Thick CrCl3 flakes (>50 nm) show excellent ambient stability for up to 5 months after growth, while ultrathin flakes show sign of degradation in 5 days. We also investigate the electrical properties of graphene/CrCl3/graphene heterostructures.             

*This work was supported by NSF through Grant No. DMR-1710461, OIA-2044049 and DMR-2118828.

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Presenters

  • Jia Wang

    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • Department of Physics and Astronomy & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Authors

  • Jia Wang

    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • Department of Physics and Astronomy & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

  • Zahra Ahmadi

    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

  • Jeffrey Shield

    • University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

  • Xia Hong

    • Department of Physics and Astronomy & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    • Department of Physics and Astronomy & Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska, Lincoln