Dirac Nodal Line Metal for Topological Antiferromagnetic Spintronics

• Published in: Physical review letters 2019-02, Vol.122 (7), p.077203-077203, Article 077203
• Main Authors: Shao, Ding-Fu, Gurung, Gautam, Zhang, Shu-Hui, Tsymbal, Evgeny Y
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antiferromagnetism; Density functional theory; Electrical resistivity; Electron spin; Electron states; First principles; Mathematical analysis; Spintronics; Torque; Transport properties
• ISSN: 0031-9007; 1079-7114
• DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.122.077203

Topological antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics is an emerging field of research, which exploits the Néel vector to control the topological electronic states and the associated spin-dependent transport properties. A recently discovered Néel spin-orbit torque has been proposed to electrically manipulate Dirac band crossings in antiferromagnets; however, a reliable AFM material to realize these properties in practice is missing. In this Letter, we predict that room-temperature AFM metal MnPd_{2} allows the electrical control of the Dirac nodal line by the Néel spin-orbit torque. Based on first-principles density functional theory calculations, we show that reorientation of the Néel vector leads to switching between the symmetry-protected degenerate state and the gapped state associated with the dispersive Dirac nodal line at the Fermi energy. The calculated spin Hall conductivity strongly depends on the Néel vector orientation and can be used to experimentally detect the predicted effect using a proposed spin-orbit torque device. Our results indicate that AFM Dirac nodal line metal MnPd_{2} represents a promising material for topological AFM spintronics.