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Main Authors: Ni, Jinyang, Yan, Congzhe, Cui, Peiyuan, Jiang, Zhijun, Jin, Yuanjun, Chang, Guoqing
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.16052
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author Ni, Jinyang
Yan, Congzhe
Cui, Peiyuan
Jiang, Zhijun
Jin, Yuanjun
Chang, Guoqing
author_facet Ni, Jinyang
Yan, Congzhe
Cui, Peiyuan
Jiang, Zhijun
Jin, Yuanjun
Chang, Guoqing
contents The magnons in antiferromagnetic insulators (AFIs) exhibit dual chirality, each carrying opposite spin angular momentum. However, in PT-symmetric AFIs, the magnon bands remain degenerate. In this work, we introduce a new class of PT-preserving AFIs in which the giant chiral splitting of magnons can be induced and controlled by an external electric field. Unlike conventional cases, such AFIs host a hidden dipole coupled to the antiferromagnetic order, which allows an external electric field to break the magnon sublattice symmetry and thereby largely lift the band degeneracy. Group theoretical analysis identifies the possible magnetic layer groups, while first-principles calculations and spin-wave theory reveal band splittings up to 20meV in Cr2CCl2 and Cr2CBr2 under the electric field of 0.2 V/Å, corresponding to an effective magnetic field of 200T. In addition, the electrically controlled magnon chiral splitting enables reversible switching of magnon-mediated spin currents. These findings open a new route toward nonvolatile spintronics based on magnons.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_16052
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Electric-Switchable Chiral Magnons in PT-Symmetric Antiferromagnets
Ni, Jinyang
Yan, Congzhe
Cui, Peiyuan
Jiang, Zhijun
Jin, Yuanjun
Chang, Guoqing
Materials Science
The magnons in antiferromagnetic insulators (AFIs) exhibit dual chirality, each carrying opposite spin angular momentum. However, in PT-symmetric AFIs, the magnon bands remain degenerate. In this work, we introduce a new class of PT-preserving AFIs in which the giant chiral splitting of magnons can be induced and controlled by an external electric field. Unlike conventional cases, such AFIs host a hidden dipole coupled to the antiferromagnetic order, which allows an external electric field to break the magnon sublattice symmetry and thereby largely lift the band degeneracy. Group theoretical analysis identifies the possible magnetic layer groups, while first-principles calculations and spin-wave theory reveal band splittings up to 20meV in Cr2CCl2 and Cr2CBr2 under the electric field of 0.2 V/Å, corresponding to an effective magnetic field of 200T. In addition, the electrically controlled magnon chiral splitting enables reversible switching of magnon-mediated spin currents. These findings open a new route toward nonvolatile spintronics based on magnons.
title Electric-Switchable Chiral Magnons in PT-Symmetric Antiferromagnets
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.16052