Proximity-induced magnetization in graphene: Towards efficient spin gating
Abstract
Gate-tunable spin-dependent properties could be induced in graphene at room temperature through the magnetic proximity effect by placing it in contact with a metallic ferromagnet. Because strong chemical bonding with the metallic substrate makes gating ineffective, an intervening passivation layer is needed. Previously considered passivation layers result in a large shift of the Dirac point away from the Fermi level, so that unrealistically large gate fields are required to tune the spin polarization in graphene (Gr). We show that a monolayer of Au or Pt used as the passivation layer between Co and graphene brings the Dirac point closer to the Fermi level. In the Co/Pt/Gr system the proximity-induced spin polarization in graphene and its gate control are strongly enhanced by the presence of a surface band near the Fermi level. Furthermore, the shift of the Dirac point could be eliminated entirely by selecting submonolayer coverage in the passivation layer. Our findings open a path towards experimental realization of an optimized two-dimensional system with gate-tunable spin-dependent properties.
- Publication:
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Physical Review Materials
- Pub Date:
- November 2020
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.4.114006
- arXiv:
- arXiv:2002.05569
- Bibcode:
- 2020PhRvM...4k4006B
- Keywords:
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- Condensed Matter - Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics;
- Condensed Matter - Materials Science
- E-Print:
- 10 pages