The effect of an applied electric field and the effect of charging are investigated on the magnetic anisotropy (MA) of various stable two-dimensional (2D) crystals such as graphene, ${\mathrm{FeCl}}_2$, graphone, fluorographene, and ${\mathrm{MoTe}}_2$ using first-principles calculations. We found that the magnetocrystalline anisotropy energy of Co-on-graphene and Os-doped-${\mathrm{MoTe}}_2$ systems change linearly with electric field, opening the possibility of electric field tuning MA of these compounds. In addition, charging can rotate the easy-axis direction of Co-on-graphene and Os-doped-${\mathrm{MoTe}}_2$ systems from the out-of-plane (in-plane) to in-plane (out-of-plane) direction. The tunable MA of the studied materials is crucial for nanoscale electronic technologies such as data storage and spintronics devices. Our results show that controlling the MA of the mentioned 2D crystal structures can be realized in various ways, and this can lead to the emergence of a wide range of potential applications where the tuning and switching of magnetic functionalities are important.

• Received 2 July 2015
• Revised 25 August 2015

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.92.104407