Magneto-transport properties of (111)-oriented thin films of pyrochlore iridates

Magnetic topological materials have attracted significant interest due to their emergent quantum properties stemming from the interplay between magnetism and non-trivial band topology. However, high-quality compounds with coexisting magnetic and topological properties at elevated temperatures are still rare. Pyrochlore iridates family with the general formula, R2Ir2O7 (R = Y, rare-earth elements), is among one of them; they are predicted to harbor a magnetic Weyl semimetallic (WSM) phase accompanied by the all-in-all-out (AIAO) antiferromagnetic (AFM) configuration. Notably, in (111)-oriented thin films of pyrochlore iridates, the theory also predicts the emergence of additional topological phases generally unattainable in their bulk-crystal counterpart. Here, we report on unusual magneto-transport properties arising from the interplay between the WSM and AFM phases and the presence of surface/interface in the thin films of iridates. The results indicate that (111)-oriented thin films of pyrochlores present itself as a promising system for zero-dissipation spintronics devices.