A new two-dimensional intrinsic ferrovalley material: Janus CeIBr monolayer

The successful synthesis and discovery of unique properties in two-dimensional Janus materials have positioned them as promising candidates for applications in sensors, field-effect transistors, and ultrasensitive detectors. In this study, we utilized first-principles calculations to predict a novel Janus CeIBr monolayer. Our calculations show that Janus CeIBr monolayer behaves as a bipolar magnetic semiconductor, demonstrating both mechanical and thermodynamic stability, along with a high Curie temperature of 242 K and in-plane magnetic anisotropy (102.92 meV). A notable intrinsic valley splitting of 66 meV is also evident in CeIBr, highlighting its distinctive valley contrast characteristic. Furthermore, the application of biaxial strain effectively transforms the magnetic ground state of CeIBr from a ferromagnetic state to an antiferromagnetic state and alters the direction of the easy magnetization axis from in-plane to out-of-plane. Our findings offer a theoretical foundation for the design of novel anomalous valley Hall effect-based electronic devices utilizing the Janus CeIBr monolayer.