Signatures of Chiral Phonons in MnPS$_3$ from first principles

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Chatterjee, Banhi, Kratzer, Peter
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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_version_ 1866916950054010880
author Chatterjee, Banhi
Kratzer, Peter
author_facet Chatterjee, Banhi
Kratzer, Peter
contents Two-dimensional (2D) materials may host circular phonons, considered as chiral if the presence of a substrate breaks mirror symmetry. In 2D transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayers lacking inversion symmetry, phonons with a given chirality can be observed in the non-equilibrium state triggered by optical excitations using circularly polarized light. Backed by first-principles calculations, we present the antiferromagnetic semiconductor MnPS$_3$ with a hexagonal crystal structure and bandstructure similar to TMDCs, but a larger unit cell, as a novel candidate material that may allow for excitation of circular phonons. Using DFT+U and the finite displacement method we obtain in-plane chiral phonon modes at the valley points of a monolayer MnPS$_3$. These modes can be classified according to the Mn or S atoms performing circular motions about their equilibrium positions. In each case, the quantized angular momentum of the phonons is calculated. Moreover, we point out ways to populate the chiral phonons selectively via optical excitation with circularly polarized light.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_11879
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Signatures of Chiral Phonons in MnPS$_3$ from first principles
Chatterjee, Banhi
Kratzer, Peter
Materials Science
Other Condensed Matter
Two-dimensional (2D) materials may host circular phonons, considered as chiral if the presence of a substrate breaks mirror symmetry. In 2D transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayers lacking inversion symmetry, phonons with a given chirality can be observed in the non-equilibrium state triggered by optical excitations using circularly polarized light. Backed by first-principles calculations, we present the antiferromagnetic semiconductor MnPS$_3$ with a hexagonal crystal structure and bandstructure similar to TMDCs, but a larger unit cell, as a novel candidate material that may allow for excitation of circular phonons. Using DFT+U and the finite displacement method we obtain in-plane chiral phonon modes at the valley points of a monolayer MnPS$_3$. These modes can be classified according to the Mn or S atoms performing circular motions about their equilibrium positions. In each case, the quantized angular momentum of the phonons is calculated. Moreover, we point out ways to populate the chiral phonons selectively via optical excitation with circularly polarized light.
title Signatures of Chiral Phonons in MnPS$_3$ from first principles
topic Materials Science
Other Condensed Matter
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.11879