title: Intrinsic ferromagnetism in hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets.
abstract: Understanding the mechanism of ferromagnetism in hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets, which possess only s and p electrons in comparison with normal ferromagnets based on localized d or f electrons, is a current challenge. In this work, we report an experimental finding that the ferromagnetic coupling is an intrinsic property of hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets, which has never been reported before. Moreover, we further confirm it from ab initio calculations. We show that the measured ferromagnetism should be attributed to the localized π states at edges, where the electron-electron interaction plays the role in this ferromagnetic ordering. More importantly, we demonstrate such edge-induced ferromagnetism causes a high Curie temperature well above room temperature. Our systematical work, including experimental measurements and theoretical confirmation, proves that such unusual room temperature ferromagnetism in hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets is edge-dependent, similar to widely reported graphene-based materials. It is believed that this work will open new perspectives for hexagonal boron nitride spintronic devices.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Si
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: Daqiang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: Dezheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: Z Y
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
authors.forename: Desheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials and College of Physics and Engineering, Changshu Institute of Technology, Changshu 215500, China.
authors.forename: Yushen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Electronic Information Science, Hengyang Normal University, Hengyang 421008, China.
authors.forename: Xiaohui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana 47809, USA.
authors.forename: G P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Zhang