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    Magnon-mediated switching of perpendicular magnetization by the topological crystalline insulator SnTe with high spin Hall conductivity

    Pengnan Zhao1,*, Guoyi Shi2,*, Wentian Lu1,*, Lihuan Yang1, Hui Ru Tan3, Kaiwei Guo1, Jia-Min Lai1, Zhonghai Yu1, Anjan Soumyanarayanan3,4 et al.

    Zhe Yuan5,6, Fei Wang1,†, Xiaohong Xu1,‡, and Hyunsoo Yang2,§

    • *These authors contributed equally to this work.
    • †Contact author: feiwang.imr@gmail.com
    • ‡Contact author: xuxh@sxnu.edu.cn
    • §Contact author: eleyang@nus.edu.sg

    Phys. Rev. B 112, 054413 – Published 5 August, 2025

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/nytv-xdry

    Abstract

    Magnons possess the ability to transport spin angular momentum in insulating magnetic materials, a characteristic that sets them apart from traditional electronics where power consumption arises from the movement of electrons. However, the practical application of magnon devices demands room-temperature operation and low switching power of perpendicular magnetization. Here we demonstrate the low-power manipulation of perpendicular magnetization via magnon torques in SnTe/NiO/CoFeB devices at room temperature. Topological crystalline insulator SnTe exhibits a high spin Hall conductivity of σs≈6.1×104(ℏ/2e)(Ωm)−1, which facilitates the generation of magnon currents in an antiferromagnetic insulator NiO. The magnon currents traverse the 20-nm-thick NiO layer and subsequently exert magnon torque on the adjacent ferromagnetic layer, leading to magnetization switching. Notably, we achieve a 22-fold reduction in power consumption in SnTe/NiO/CoFeB heterostructures compared to Bi2Te3/NiO/CoFeB control samples. Our findings establish the low-power perpendicular magnetization manipulation through magnon torques, significantly expanding the range of topological materials with practical applications.

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