Anomalous spin-lattice coupling in a 2D antiferromagnetic semiconductor revealed by surface acoustic Rayleigh waves

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Auteurs principaux: Nataj, Zahra Ebrahim, Bijoy, Md. Sabbir Hossen, Korostelev, Vladislav, Wright, Dylan, Zeinolabedini, Mohammad, Klyukin, Konstantin, Kargar, Fariborz, Balandin, Alexander A.
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Publié: 2025
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author Nataj, Zahra Ebrahim
Bijoy, Md. Sabbir Hossen
Korostelev, Vladislav
Wright, Dylan
Zeinolabedini, Mohammad
Klyukin, Konstantin
Kargar, Fariborz
Balandin, Alexander A.
author_facet Nataj, Zahra Ebrahim
Bijoy, Md. Sabbir Hossen
Korostelev, Vladislav
Wright, Dylan
Zeinolabedini, Mohammad
Klyukin, Konstantin
Kargar, Fariborz
Balandin, Alexander A.
contents Magnetic order in van der Waals magnets can strongly influence their lattice dynamics, yet how this interaction manifests across different phonon length scales remains unclear. Optical phonons probe bond-scale exchange modulation and short-range spin correlations, whereas long-wavelength acoustic modes couple to uniform strain fields and are sensitive to the renormalization of the macroscopic elastic tensor associated with long-range magnetic order. Experimentally accessing these low-energy acoustic excitations in low-dimensional crystals is challenging due to their low energies and the small lateral dimensions of exfoliated samples. Here, we employ angle-resolved Brillouin-Mandelstam scattering spectroscopy to investigate the surface acoustic phonon spectrum of exfoliated NiPS3 thin films across their antiferromagnetic transition temperature. Our results show a single Rayleigh surface mode whose phase velocity exhibits a pronounced 5.5% softening upon cooling through the Neel temperature. This anomaly reflects a giant magnetoelastic renormalization of the long-wavelength elastic constants triggered by the onset of zigzag antiferromagnetic order. First-principles calculations of the full elastic tensor, combined with continuum finite-element modelling of the NiPS3/SiO2/Si heterostructure, reproduce both the Rayleigh-wave dispersion and its magnetic-order-induced shift. The obtained results reveal how microscopic exchange interactions shape macroscopic mechanical properties in two-dimensional antiferromagnetic semiconductors, providing a basis for lattice-controlled magnetism and magnetically tunable phononic, magnonic, and strain-mediated spintronic device concepts.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_21968
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Anomalous spin-lattice coupling in a 2D antiferromagnetic semiconductor revealed by surface acoustic Rayleigh waves
Nataj, Zahra Ebrahim
Bijoy, Md. Sabbir Hossen
Korostelev, Vladislav
Wright, Dylan
Zeinolabedini, Mohammad
Klyukin, Konstantin
Kargar, Fariborz
Balandin, Alexander A.
Materials Science
Magnetic order in van der Waals magnets can strongly influence their lattice dynamics, yet how this interaction manifests across different phonon length scales remains unclear. Optical phonons probe bond-scale exchange modulation and short-range spin correlations, whereas long-wavelength acoustic modes couple to uniform strain fields and are sensitive to the renormalization of the macroscopic elastic tensor associated with long-range magnetic order. Experimentally accessing these low-energy acoustic excitations in low-dimensional crystals is challenging due to their low energies and the small lateral dimensions of exfoliated samples. Here, we employ angle-resolved Brillouin-Mandelstam scattering spectroscopy to investigate the surface acoustic phonon spectrum of exfoliated NiPS3 thin films across their antiferromagnetic transition temperature. Our results show a single Rayleigh surface mode whose phase velocity exhibits a pronounced 5.5% softening upon cooling through the Neel temperature. This anomaly reflects a giant magnetoelastic renormalization of the long-wavelength elastic constants triggered by the onset of zigzag antiferromagnetic order. First-principles calculations of the full elastic tensor, combined with continuum finite-element modelling of the NiPS3/SiO2/Si heterostructure, reproduce both the Rayleigh-wave dispersion and its magnetic-order-induced shift. The obtained results reveal how microscopic exchange interactions shape macroscopic mechanical properties in two-dimensional antiferromagnetic semiconductors, providing a basis for lattice-controlled magnetism and magnetically tunable phononic, magnonic, and strain-mediated spintronic device concepts.
title Anomalous spin-lattice coupling in a 2D antiferromagnetic semiconductor revealed by surface acoustic Rayleigh waves
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.21968