Study of Vander Waals Heterostructure-Based Antiferromagnetic SpinValves for Next-Generation Memory Technology

The Room-Temperature Antiferromagnetic Topological Spin Valve (AF-TSV) is a new type of memory technology that uses antiferromagnetic (AFM) materials and topological quantum states in vander Waals (vdW) heterostructures[1, 2]. This device uses the interaction between spin-momentum-locked surface states and Néel order dynamics by combining atomically thin AFM layers (such as FePS₃ and MnBi₂Te₄) with topological insulators (TIs) like Bi₂Se₃[6, 10]. The AF-TSV works without outside magnetic fields, unlike regular ferromagnetic spin valves. Instead, it uses ultrafast spin-orbit torque (SOT)[3, 7] switching caused by current pulses in the plane. The lack of stray fields makes it possible for ultra-dense crossbar topologies to scale down to nodes smaller than 10 nm. Defect-tolerant vdW interfaces and strong AFM order keep the system stable at ambient temperature and allow switching on the picosecond scale. Recent advances in electrically controllable exchange bias and interfacial spin transfer support the viability of experiments[4]. The AF-TSV bridges high-speed volatile memory and slow, durable storage. It has speeds above 100 GHz, energy efficiency below 10 fJ/bit, and it does not lose data. It is the foundation for next-generation computing, edge AI, and quantum-ready hardware. The AF-TSV study gives novel approaches to changing memory, as well as other things. By accumulating different AFM layers on top of each other in different ways (such as zigzag vs. stripy), multi-state memory cells might store more than 2 bits per cell through gate-tunable interlayer exchange coupling. By mixing TI surface states with AFM layers, it should be possible to create zero-field tunneling magnetoresistance that is more than 500%, which would allow for ultra-sensitive readout without changing the Néel vector[5]. Adding piezoelectric vdW substrates like In₂Se₃ could make strain-mediated switching possible. In this process, uniaxial strain changes AFM anisotropy in real time to allow for voltage-controlled, ultra-low-power operation. The device's analog resistance states could help neuromorphic computing by imitating synaptic plasticity through partial Néel reorientation. Picosecond switching speeds up inference workloads. Also, proximity-induced topological superconductivity at TI/AFM interfaces, through Rashba spin-orbit coupling[7], could host Majorana zero modes. This would make it possible to create hybrid memory-qubit architectures for quantum systems that can handle errors. We need to find ways to fix problems like interfacial defects, map AFM dynamics with picosecond resolution, and produce heterostructures on a wafer scale. However, these problems also bring chances for breakthroughs in ultrafast spintronics, quantum materials engineering, and energy-efficient computing[11]. The AF-TSV is a combination of topology, antiferromagnetism, and vdW design that is about to change the way we think about non-volatile memory and computing architectures.