Magnetic topological transistor exploiting layer-selective transport

Abstract

We propose a magnetic topological transistor based on MnBi_{2}Te_{4}, in which the “on” state (quantized conductance) and the “off” state (zero conductance) can be easily switched by changing the relative direction of two adjacent electric fields (parallel vs antiparallel) applied within a two-terminal junction. We explain that the proposed magnetic topological transistor relies on a novel mechanism due to the interplay of topology, magnetism, and layer degrees of freedom in MnBi_{2}Te_{4}. Its performance depends substantially on film thickness and type of magnetic order. We show that “on” and “off” states of the transistor are robust against disorder due to the topological nature of the surface states. Our work opens an avenue for applications of layer-selective transport based on the topological van der Waals antiferromagnet MnBi_{2}Te_{4}.