Two-dimensional ferromagnetic semiconductors of rare-earth Janus 2H-GdIBr monolayers with large valley polarization

Abstract

) of Gd atoms dominate the MAE behaviors, which originates from the competition between the contributions of the Gd-d orbitals, Gd-p orbitals, and p orbitals of halogen atoms based on the second-order perturbation theory. Inequivalent Dirac valleys are not energetically degenerate due to the time-reversal symmetry breaking in the Janus 2H-GdIBr monolayer. A considerable valley gap between the Berry curvature at the K and K' points provides an opportunity to selectively control the valley freedom and states. External tensile (compressive) strain further increases (decreases) the valley gap up to a maximum (minimum) value of 158 (37) meV, indicating that the valley polarization in the Janus 2H-GdIBr monolayer is robust to external strains. This study provides a novel paradigm and platform to design spintronic devices for next-generation quantum information technology.