Growth and characterization of room temperature antiferromagnetic I-Mn-V semiconductors

The integration of ferromagnetism and semiconductors has been studied extensively, but devices operate well below room temperature. Recent theoretical and experimental works have opened a new route for spintronics based on antiferromagnets. Remarkably, high-temperature antiferromagnetic order is much more compatible with semiconductors than the ferromagnetic order. In our work we focus on the family of I-Mn-V antiferromagnetic semiconductor. We report on our synthesis of bulk and thin-film epilayers of the I-Mn-V compounds and on their basic electrical and magnetic properties. We will discuss the utility of these materials for designing antiferromagnetic semiconductor spintronic devices. \\[4pt] [1] Phys. Rev. B 83, 035321 (2010) \\[0pt] [2] http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.5373