Strain-tunable magnetism in Monolayer puckered pentagonal VTe2

The discovery of intrinsic two-dimensional (2D) magnetic materials has opened new avenues for exploring low-dimensional magnetism and spintronic functionalities. Among various control strategies, strain engineering provides a versatile and efficient approach for modulating the magnetic and electronic properties of 2D systems. In this work, we investigate a novel 2D puckered pentagonal phase VTe₂ (PP-VTe₂) and find that it hosts intrinsic bipolar magnetic semiconducting (BMS) behavior with strong strain-dependent magnetic properties. The magnetization direction of PP-VTe₂ can be regulated by applying strain, transforming the in-plane easy magnetization plane into an out-of-plane easy magnetization axis. The modulation of magnetic exchange interaction under strain is direction-dependent, and the Curie temperature (T_c) shows adjustability and robustness under compressive strain and tensile strain, respectively. The tunable magnetism of PP-VTe₂ under strain is explained microscopically by analyzing spin-orbit coupling and magnetic exchange interaction. In addition, the magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) of PP-VTe₂ was studied, which has good magneto-optical responsivity, which is conducive to its application in non-contact magneto-optical responsive devices. These findings demonstrate that structural distortion under strain influences spin ordering in PP-VTe₂, unraveling mechanisms for 2D magnetism control and highlighting routes toward strain-engineered spintronics.