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Many-body interactions explain defective MnBi2Te4

Reboredo highlight March 2026
Antisite defect density per Mn site as a function of temperature predicted from a single defect DFT energy (blue) and correcting for electronic correlations and defect-defect interactions (green). Inset: cut off radii of defect interactions with QMC corrections (red) and calculated with DFT (blue).

Scientific Achievement: Accurate many-body calculations predict a disorder transition in MnBi₂Te₄ involving Bi(Mn) antisites well below its synthesis temperature.

Significance and Impact: Work explains the experimental difficulties in obtaining defect-free MnBi₂Te₄, a layered magnetic topological insulator with potential for next-generation quantum devices.

DOI: 10.1038/s41524-026-02019-8

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