Room-temperature van der Waals 2D ferromagnet switching by spin-orbit torques

Abstract: Emerging wide varieties of the two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) magnets with atomically thin and smooth interfaces holds great promise for next-generation spintronic devices. However, due to the lower Curie temperature of the vdW 2D ferromagnets than room temperature, electrically manipulating its magnetization at room temperature has not been realized. In this work, we demonstrate the perpendicular magnetization of 2D vdW ferromagnet Fe3GaTe2 can be effectively switched at room temperature in Fe3GaTe2/Pt bilayer by spin-orbit torques (SOTs) with a relatively low current density of 1.3 10^7A/cm2. Moreover, the high SOT efficiency of \xi_{DL}~0.22 is quantitatively determined by harmonic measurements, which is higher than those in Pt-based heavy metal/conventional ferromagnet devices. Our findings of room-temperature vdW 2D ferromagnet switching by SOTs provide a significant basis for the development of vdW-ferromagnet-based spintronic applications.