Single-crystalline CrSb(0001) thin films grown by dc magnetron co-sputtering

The study of altermagnets has spurred interest in synthesizing epitaxial films of hexagonal CrSb, a prominent example of this class. However, growing this compound along its high-symmetry $c$-axis is particularly challenging. Here, the authors report the magnetron co-sputtering-based fabrication and characterization of high-quality single crystalline CrSb(0001) thin film seeded by an isostructural, nonmagnetic PtSb underlayer. PtSb promotes the desired orientation and preserves the intrinsic properties of CrSb, providing a clean platform for studying its magnetic structure, transport properties, and band topology. These results mark a significant step toward unlocking the potential of CrSb in spintronic applications.