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    Floquet-induced altermagnetic transition in A-type antiferromagnetic bilayers

    Baoru Pan1, Pan Zhou1,2,*, Yuzhong Hu2, Songmin Liu2, Binchang Zhou2, Huaping Xiao3, Xuejuan Yang3, and Lizhong Sun1,†

    • 1Key Laboratory of Low Dimensional Materials and Application Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China
    • 2Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Thin Film Materials and Devices, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China
    • 3School of Physics and Optoelectronics, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, People's Republic of China

    • *Contact author: zhoupan71234@xtu.edu.cn
    • †Contact author: lzsun@xtu.edu.cn

    Phys. Rev. B 112, 224430 – Published 18 December, 2025

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/nn5t-kmln

    Abstract

    Two-dimensional (2D) altermagnetism has attracted considerable attention due to its low-dimensional character and intrinsic combination of spin splitting with zero net magnetization. In previous work, we developed a general stacking theory (GST) to identify stacking-induced altermagnetism in 2D A-type bilayers; however, many systems are symmetry-restricted, preventing realization through stacking alone. Here, we show that Floquet engineering can lift these symmetry constraints by breaking the combined inversion and time-reversal symmetry (IT), enabling a transition from an A-type antiferromagnet to an altermagnet in 2D bilayers. By combining the GST with a comprehensive group-theoretical symmetry analysis, we find that only bilayers with initial centrosymmetric point groups D3d or C2h can undergo such Floquet-induced transitions. Systematic screening identifies 349 stacking configurations, derived from 80 monolayer layer groups, that satisfy the necessary group-subgroup symmetry conditions. First-principles calculations on bilayer NiCl2 with D3d and C2h symmetries confirm the emergence of light-induced spin splitting consistent with the predicted altermagnetic spin point groups. These findings establish a Floquet-based framework for designing dynamically tunable 2D altermagnets and point toward potential applications in spintronic devices and low-dimensional magnetic systems.

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