Transport properties of magnetically doped carbon/silicon-based thin films in high magnetic fields.

Prof. X. Zhang's group of Tsinghua University discovered a semiconducting Fe-C/si film which has a MR of 550,000% at T=20K below B=5T and a MR of 40% at room temperature below B=50Oe. This discovery won 6 Chinese patents and the research has been continually supported by National Science Foundation of China (2003-2011). Prof. V.V. Moshchalkov's group is active (in a collaboration with IMEC and UA) in the domain of diluted magnetic semiconductors and giant magnetoresistance effects. The expertises of both groups are supplementary. In this joint research project the collaborative team will study the transport properties of the Fe-C/Si system. In this joint project, Tsinghua University researchers will be mainly working on material growth, XRD and TEM characterization, transport properties measurement and spin injection study in temperature range of 20-300K and in magnetic field up to 5T, whereas leuven University researchers will mainly be working on transport properties and spin injection measurement in a temperature range of 300mk-300K and in high magnetic field up to 60T. Both groups will work out together the mechanism of the transport properties of these magnetically doped carbon/silicon systems.

Keywords:Spin injection, GMR, Fe-Si, Fe doped semiconductors, Fe-C

Disciplines:Condensed matter physics and nanophysics