Twin-boundary-induced nonrelativistic spin splitting

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Eggestad, Kristoffer, Vila, Marc, Selbach, Sverre M., Griffin, Sinéad M.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Eggestad, Kristoffer
Vila, Marc
Selbach, Sverre M.
Griffin, Sinéad M.
author_facet Eggestad, Kristoffer
Vila, Marc
Selbach, Sverre M.
Griffin, Sinéad M.
contents Nonrelativistic spin splitting (NRSS) in compensated magnetic materials is drawing considerable attention due to its potential impact in next-generation spintronic devices. While NRSS is typically restricted to materials with particular symmetry constraints, here we demonstrate, using density functional theory (DFT) and tight-binding transport calculations, that twin boundaries can induce NRSS in magnetic systems where it is otherwise forbidden. We focus on two representative material systems: the tetragonal perovskite oxide BiCoO$_3$ with $90^{\circ}$ ferroelastic domain walls, and the rhombohedral layered delafossite-type oxide CoO$_2$, supporting $71^{\circ}$, $109^{\circ}$, and $135^{\circ}$ twin boundaries. Our results reveal that, if these boundaries coexist with ferromagnetic domain walls, they consistently produce NRSS similar to that of d-wave altermagnets, with nodal surfaces dictated by the underlying symmetry of the supercell containing the twin boundary. Tight-binding models further elucidate how the NRSS and derived transport properties scale with domain size and density. Our results put forward twin boundary engineering as a versatile route to realize and control spin splitting in a broader class of materials.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_14029
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Twin-boundary-induced nonrelativistic spin splitting
Eggestad, Kristoffer
Vila, Marc
Selbach, Sverre M.
Griffin, Sinéad M.
Materials Science
Nonrelativistic spin splitting (NRSS) in compensated magnetic materials is drawing considerable attention due to its potential impact in next-generation spintronic devices. While NRSS is typically restricted to materials with particular symmetry constraints, here we demonstrate, using density functional theory (DFT) and tight-binding transport calculations, that twin boundaries can induce NRSS in magnetic systems where it is otherwise forbidden. We focus on two representative material systems: the tetragonal perovskite oxide BiCoO$_3$ with $90^{\circ}$ ferroelastic domain walls, and the rhombohedral layered delafossite-type oxide CoO$_2$, supporting $71^{\circ}$, $109^{\circ}$, and $135^{\circ}$ twin boundaries. Our results reveal that, if these boundaries coexist with ferromagnetic domain walls, they consistently produce NRSS similar to that of d-wave altermagnets, with nodal surfaces dictated by the underlying symmetry of the supercell containing the twin boundary. Tight-binding models further elucidate how the NRSS and derived transport properties scale with domain size and density. Our results put forward twin boundary engineering as a versatile route to realize and control spin splitting in a broader class of materials.
title Twin-boundary-induced nonrelativistic spin splitting
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.14029