Magnetic anisotropy phenomena in bimetallic antiferromagnets Mn2Au and MnIr are studied by first-principles density functional theory calculations. We find strong and lattice-parameter dependent magnetic anisotropies of the ground state energy, chemical potential, and density of states, and attribute these anisotropies to combined effects of large moment on the Mn 3d shell and large spin-orbit coupling on the 5d shell of the noble metal. Large magnitudes of the proposed effects can open a route towards spintronics in compensated antiferromagnets without involving ferromagnetic elements.
@article{arxiv.1002.2151,
title = {Spin-orbit coupling induced anisotropy effects in bimetallic antiferromagnets: A route towards antiferromagnetic spintronics},
author = {Alexander B. Shick and Sergii Khmelevskyi and Oleg N. Mryasov and Joerg Wunderlich and Tomas Jungwirth},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1002.2151},
year = {2010}
}