Spin-orbit torque enables the electrical control of the orientation of ferromagnets' or antiferromagnets' order parameter. In this work we consider antiferromagnets in which the magnetic sublattices are connected by inversion+time reversal symmetry, and in which the exchange and anisotropy energies are similar in magnitude. We identify the staggered dampinglike spin-orbit torque as the key mechanism for electrical excitation of the N\'eel vector for this case. To illustrate this scenario, we examine the 2-d Van der Waals antiferromagnetic bilayer \ch{CrI3}, in the n-doped regime. Using a combination of first-principles calculations of the spin-orbit torque and an analysis of the ensuing spin dynamics, we show that the deterministic electrical switching of the N\'eel vector is the result of dampinglike spin-orbit torque which is staggered on the magnetic sublattices.
@article{arxiv.2104.05155,
title = {Intrinsic staggered spin-orbit torque for the electrical control of antiferromagnets -- application to CrI$_3$},
author = {Fei Xue and Paul M. Haney},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2104.05155},
year = {2026}
}