Magneto-electronics, transport properties, and tuning effects of arsenene armchair nanotubes doped with transition metal atoms

Abstract

Recently, the arsenic monolayer has been successfully fabricated by micromechanical stripping. However, it is a non-magnetic semiconductor, including its derivatives. Here, we theoretically explore how to induce magnetism for arsenene armchair nanotubes (AsANTs) with a low-concentration TM (TM = Co, Y, Rh, Ni, Mo, Ru) atom doping, especially focusing on their structural stability, magneto-electronic property, carrier mobility, and strain effects. The high stability of these doped tubes are confirmed by the calculated binding energy and formation energy, as well as Forcite annealing molecular dynamics simulations. The AsANT can act as bandgap narrowed non-magnetic semiconductors or highly spin-polarized magnetic semiconductors (half-semiconductor or bipolar magnetic semiconductor) depending on TM types, suggesting different promising applications such as developing infrared photodetectors with broadband detectionin or spintronic devices. The magnetic thermal stability beyond room temperature is predicted for doped tubes. Furthermore, the carrier mobility of AsANTs can be tuned into a wide region by TM doping, but it is enhanced in most cases. The carrier and spin polarity of mobility can also be clearly observed. Particularly, the applied strain can induce a rich magnetic phase transition among a half-semiconductor, half-metal, bipolar magnetic semiconductor and nonmagnetic state. Furthermore, the presented stepwise change of total magnetic moment between high magnetized and nonmagnetic states is highly desirable for engineering a mechanical switch which can reversibly work between magnetism and demagnetism to control spin-polarized transport by applying strain.