Physical review. B./Physical review. B· 2026Q1
Ligand-mediated origin of altermagnetic spin splitting
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- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
Ligand-mediated hybridization, not direct magnetic-ion hopping, is the dominant mechanism driving spin splitting in the altermagnet Co$_{1/4}$NbSe$_2$, according to first-principles calculations.
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Key points
- Spin splitting in altermagnets, like Co$_{1/4}$NbSe$_2$, arises from ligand-mediated hybridization, not direct magnetic-ion hopping.
- A short-range tight-binding model captures the local origin of this spin splitting.
- Selective control of hopping channels demonstrates the dominant role of ligand-assisted coupling.
- This finding provides a microscopic link between theoretical models and material design for spintronics.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Altermagnets host spin-split electronic bands despite zero net magnetization, opening new routes for spintronics beyond conventional ferromagnets. Going beyond symmetry-based classifications, which specify allowed terms but not their hierarchy, here we use first-principles calculations and Wannier Hamiltonian engineering to uncover the microscopic bonding contributions of altermagnetic spin splitting in the $g$-wave altermagnet Co$_{1/4}$NbSe$_2$. We show that the splitting is captured by a short-range tight-binding model, establishing its local origin. By selectively controlling hopping channels, we demonstrate that the dominant contribution arises not from direct magnetic-ion hopping, but from ligand-mediated hybridization that transfers anisotropy to itinerant states. This identifies ligand-assisted coupling as the key mechanism of altermagnetic spin splitting and provides a microscopic bridge between minimal models and symmetry guided first-principles material searches, enabling real-space design of altermagnetic functionality.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Physical review. B./Physical review. B, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Atomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsPhysics and Astronomy