Realizing reversible spin reorientation in van der Waals magnetic interfaces by strain

Magnetic anisotropy (MA) is one of the key properties in two-dimensional (2D) magnetic materials, as it determines the type of magnetism and its stabilities. Since the discovery of intrinsic 2D magnetic materials, the MA has garnered significant attention, and more efforts have been devoted to its effective manipulation. In this study, we construct van der Waals heterostructures by overlaying the CrI3 monolayer on five kinds of MXene layers. Our first-principles calculations reveal that the MA of the CrI3 layer can be effectively tuned through the formation of CrI3/MXene heterostructures. Notably, the magnetic anisotropy energy (MAE) can be enhanced by up to 71% in CrI3/Ti2CO2. Furthermore, by applying biaxial strain to CrI3/MXene, we achieve a wide-range regulation of MAE, and even small strain can induce a switch in the spin direction between in-plane and out-of-plane orientations. This pronounced response of MAE to strain should be attributed to the tunable interfacial effects. Our findings provide enlightenment to manipulate the MAE of 2D magnetic materials effectively through the synergistic effect of interfacial effects and strain.