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DOE OSTI · 3393795

Giant Exfoliation Induced Magnetic Coercivity in Fe 3 GaTe 2

Mei, Lingrui [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)]·Cai, PeiYu [Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland (United Kingdom)] (ORCID:0000000239038941)·Lee, Sang‐Eon [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0000000278276117)·Li, Yue [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)]·Karullithodi, Shyam Raj [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0009000812506902)·Kulichenko, Vadym [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0000000184276167)·Pathak, Charudatta [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000289310296)·Santos, Elton J. G. [Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland (United Kingdom); Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), San Sebastian (Spain)] (ORCID:0000000160655787)·Balicas, Luis [Baylor Univ., Waco, TX (United States)] (ORCID:0000000252090293)
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Abstract

Permanent magnets with strong anisotropy and high coercivity underpin modern information and energy technologies, yet rare-earth-free alternatives remain limited. Here, we show that thickness engineering via mechanical exfoliation induces hard magnetic behavior in the van der Waals ferromagnet Fe 3 GaTe 2 . Bulk crystals exhibit Curie temperatures above 350 K but negligible room-temperature coercivity. When thinned below ∼100 nm, the coercive field is dramatically enhanced, reaching nearly 1 T at room temperature for in-plane fields—comparable to conventional hard magnets. Micromagnetic analysis reveals a crossover in magnetization reversal from domain-mediated processes in bulk samples to quasi-coherent rotation in thin flakes, driven by increased effective anisotropy and suppressed domain formation. This thickness-dependent transition enables tuning of magnetic hardness without chemical modification. Combined with high saturation magnetization and robust room-temperature performance, Fe 3 GaTe 2 emerges as a promising rare-earth-free material for spintronic applications. Its layered structure further allows integration into van der Waals heterostructures, where large in-plane coercivity can stabilize magnetic states against perturbations and interlayer coupling, offering potential for high-density nonvolatile memory and domain-wall-based devices.

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36 MATERIALS SCIENCEanomalous hall effectexfoliationmagnetic coercivityvan der waals magnets

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Mei, Lingrui [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)], Cai, PeiYu [Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland (United Kingdom)] (ORCID:0000000239038941), Lee, Sang‐Eon [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0000000278276117), Li, Yue [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)], Karullithodi, Shyam Raj [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0009000812506902), Kulichenko, Vadym [Florida State Univ., Tallahassee, FL (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab. (MagLab)] (ORCID:0000000184276167), Pathak, Charudatta [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000289310296), Santos, Elton J. G. [Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland (United Kingdom); Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), San Sebastian (Spain)] (ORCID:0000000160655787), Balicas, Luis [Baylor Univ., Waco, TX (United States)] (ORCID:0000000252090293). 2026-07-25. Giant Exfoliation Induced Magnetic Coercivity in Fe 3 GaTe 2. https://doi.org/10.1002/aelm.70493

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