Structural, Electronic, and Magnetic Characteristics of Graphitic Carbon Nitride Nanoribbons and Their Applications in Spintronics

Abstract

The development of quantum information and quantum computing technology requires special materials to design and manufacture nanosized spintronic devices. Possessing remarkable structural, electronic, and magnetic characteristics, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) can be a promising candidate as a building block of futuristic nanoelectronics and spintronic systems. Here, using first-principles calculations, we perform a comprehensive study on the structural stability as well as electronic and magnetic properties of triazine-based g-C3N4 nanoribbons (gt-CNRs). Our calculations show that gt-CNRs with different edge conformation exhibit distinct electronic and magnetic characteristics, which can be tuned by the edge H-passivation rate. By investigating gt-CNRs with various possible edge configurations and H-termination rates, we show that while the ferromagnetic (FM) ordering of gt-CNRs stays preserved for all of the studied configurations, half metallicity can only be achieved in nanoribbons with specific edge structure under full H-passivation rate. For spintronic application purposes, we also study spin-transport properties of half-metal gt-CNRs. By determining the suitable gt-CNR configuration, we show the possibility of developing a perfect gt-CNR-based spin filter with a spin filter efficiency (SFE) of 100%. Considering the above-mentioned notable electronic and magnetic characteristics as well as its high thermal stability, we show that gt-CNR would be a remarkable material to fabricate multifunctional spintronic devices.