Possible high-temperature magnetically topological material Mn$_{3}$Bi$_{2}$Te$_{6}$

Abstract

The Mn-Bi-Te family displaying magnetism and non-trivial topological properties has received extensive attention. Here, we predict that the antiferromagnetic structure of Mn$_{3}$Bi$_{2}$Te$_{6}$ with three MnTe layers is energetically stable and the magnetic coupling strength of Mn-Mn is enhanced four times compared with that in the single MnTe layer of MnBi$_{2}$Te$_{4}$. The predicted N\'eel transition point is higher than 77 K, the liquid-nitrogen temperature. The topological properties show that with the variation of the MnTe layer from a single layer to three layers, the system transforms from a nontrivial topological phase to a trivial topological phase. Interestingly, the ferromagnetic state of Mn$_{3}$Bi$_{2}$Te$_{6}$ is a topological semimetal and it exhibits a topological transition from trivial to nontrivial induced by the magnetic transition. Our results enrich the Mn-Bi-Te family system, offer a new platform for studying topological phase transitions, and pave a new way to improve the working temperature of magnetically topological devices.