Molecular epitaxy growth of antiferromagnetic Kagome metal FeSn*

Kagome metals are metals with the crystal structures of the kagome lattice, the two-dimensional structure with atoms arranged in corner-sharing triangles, and other two-dimensional layers. The hexagonal arrangement and the lattice symmetry produce Dirac fermions in its band structure [1]. FeSn is an antiferromagnetic version of kagome metal where magnetic element Fe populates the kagome lattice. Taking advantage of magnetic interactions, FeSn is a promising platform to control the properties of Dirac fermions by the magnetic degree of freedom in electronic devices. Here we report the first realization of high quality epitaxial FeSn thin films [2]. Using optimized growth schemes, and electrical and magnetic torque measurements, we observed that the thin films show residual resistivity ratio between 300 K and 2 K up to 24, and support an antiferromagnetic ordering temperature 353 K comparable to the bulk one. This opens a route toward electronic and spintronics device applications of magnetic Dirac fermions.
[1] L. Ye, M. Kang, et al., Nature 555, 638 (2018).
[2] H. Inoue, M. Han, et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 115, 072403 (2019).