Magnetic semiconductors are highly sought in spintronics, which allow not only the control of charge carriers like in traditional electronics, but also the control of spin states. However, almost all known magnetic semiconductors are featured with bandgaps larger than 1 eV, which limits their applications in long‐wavelength regimes. In this work, the discovery of orthorhombic‐structured Ti2O3 films is reported as a unique narrow‐bandgap (≈0.1 eV) ferromagnetic oxide semiconductor. In contrast, the well‐known corundum‐structured Ti2O3 polymorph has an antiferromagnetic ground state. This comprehensive study on epitaxial Ti2O3 thin films reveals strong correlations between structure, electrical, and magnetic properties. The new orthorhombic Ti2O3 polymorph is found to be n‐type with a very high electron concentration, while the bulk‐type trigonal‐structured Ti2O3 is p‐type. More interestingly, in contrast to the antiferromagnetic ground state of trigonal bulk Ti2O3, unexpected ferromagnetism with a transition temperature well above room temperature is observed in the orthorhombic Ti2O3, which is confirmed by X‐ray magnetic circular dichroism measurements. Using first‐principles calculations, the ferromagnetism is attributed to a particular type of oxygen vacancies in the orthorhombic Ti2O3. The room‐temperature ferromagnetism observed in orthorhombic‐structured Ti2O3, demonstrates a new route toward controlling magnetism in epitaxial oxide films through selective stabilization of polymorph phases.

1T-phase MoS2 is a promising electrode material for electrochemical energy storage due to its metallic conductivity, abundant active sites, and high theoretical capacity. However, because of the habitual conversion of metastable 1T to stable 2H phase via restacking, the poor rate capacity and cycling stability at high current densities hamper their applications. Herein, a synergetic effect of electron-injection engineering and atomic-interface engineering is employed for the formation and stabilization of defected 1T-rich MoS2 nanoflowers. The 1T-rich MoS2 and carbon monolayers are alternately intercalated with each other in the nanohybrids. The metallic 1T-phase MoS2 and conductive carbon monolayers are favorable for charge transport. The expanded interlayer spacing ensures fast electrolyte diffusion and the decrease of the ion diffusion barrier. The obtained defected 1T-rich MoS2/m-C nanoflowers exhibit high Na-storage capacity (557 mAh g–1 after 80 cycles at 0.1 A g–1), excellent rate capacity (411 mAh g–1 at 10 A g–1), and long-term cycling performance (364 mAh g–1 after 1000 cycles at 2 A g–1). Furthermore, a Na-ion full cell composed of the 1T-rich MoS2/m-C anode and Na3V2(PO4)3/C cathode maintains excellent cycling stability at 0.5 A g–1 during 400 cycles. Theoretical calculations are also performed to evaluate the phase stability, electronic conductivity, and Na+ diffusion behavior of 1T-rich MoS2/m-C. The energy storage performance demonstrates its excellent application prospects.

Sliding ferroelectricity (SFE) found in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) materials, such as BN and transition-metal dichalcogenides bilayers, opens an avenue for 2D ferroelectric materials. Multiferroic coupling in 2D SFE materials brings us an alternative concept for spintronic memory devices. In this study, using first-principles calculations, we demonstrate that MnSe multilayers constructed by the recently-synthesized MnSe monolayer have large sliding-driven reversible out-of-plane electric polarization (~10.6 pC m−1) and moderate interlayer sliding barriers superior to the existing 2D SFE materials. Interestingly, the intrinsic electric polarization is accompanied by nonzero net magnetic moments which are also switchable via lateral interlayer sliding. Additionally, both SFE and magnetoelectric coupling can be effectively regulated by external strain and/or hole doping. Our findings suggest the potential of MnSe multilayers in 2D multiferroic and spintronic applications.

The recent observation of the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) without notable magnetization in antiferromagnets has suggested that ferromagnetic ordering is not a necessary condition. Thus, recent theoretical studies have proposed that higher-rank magnetic multipoles formed by clusters of spins (cluster multipoles) can generate the AHE without magnetization. Despite such an intriguing proposal, controlling the unconventional AHE by inducing these cluster multipoles has not been investigated. Here, we demonstrate that strain can manipulate the hidden Berry curvature effect by inducing the higher-rank cluster multipoles in spin-orbit–coupled antiferromagnets. Observing the large AHE on fully strained antiferromagnetic Nd2Ir2O7 thin films, we prove that strain-induced cluster T1-octupoles are the only source of observed AHE. Our results provide a previously unidentified pathway for generating the unconventional AHE via strain-induced magnetic structures and establish a platform for exploring undiscovered topological phenomena via strain in correlated materials.

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Correlated topological phases (CTPs) with interplay between topology and electronic correlations have attracted tremendous interest in condensed matter physics. Therein, correlated Weyl semimetals (WSMs) are rare in nature and, thus, have so far been less investigated experimentally. In particular, the experimental realization of the interacting WSM state with logarithmic Fermi velocity renormalization has not been achieved yet. Here, experimental evidence of a correlated magnetic WSM state with logarithmic renormalization in strained pyrochlore iridate Pr2Ir2O7 (PIO) which is a paramagnetic Luttinger semimetal in bulk, is reported. Benefitting from epitaxial strain, “bulk‐absent” all‐in–all‐out antiferromagnetic ordering can be stabilized in PIO film, which breaks time‐reversal symmetry and leads to a magnetic WSM state. With further analysis of the experimental data and renormalization group calculations, an interacting Weyl liquid state with logarithmically renormalized Fermi velocity, similar to that in graphene, is found, dressed by long‐range Coulomb interactions. This work highlights the interplay of strain, magnetism, and topology with electronic correlations, and paves the way for strain‐engineering of CTPs in pyrochlore iridates.

Titanium sesquioxide (Ti2O3) is drawing broad attention due to its fascinating physical properties and promising applications in the fields of energy, biomedicine, and electronics, among others. Its richness is due mainly to the strongly correlated 3d1 electrons on the Ti3+ sites. In stark contrast to titanium dioxide (TiO2), Ti2O3 has an ultra‐narrow bandgap (≈0.1 eV) at room temperature, resulting from strong correlation among the 3d1 electrons. Distinct electrical and optical properties are introduced in Ti2O3, accompanied with varied intriguing applications. Remarkable photothermal conversion, infrared photodetection, and electrocatalytic properties have been reported and explored in the past few years. Based on its unique and excellent properties, Ti2O3 has been utilized in seawater desalination, electrocatalytic water splitting, cancer therapy, hydrogen production, mid‐infrared photodetection, nitrogen fixation, Li‐ion batteries, etc. Herein, the fabrication, structural and electronic properties of Ti2O3 are comprehensively introduced, with a focused summary of recent research progress on its applications. Finally, current challenges, opportunities, and future perspectives of Ti2O3 are discussed.

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