Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe

preprint Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe submitted Alex Liebman-Peláez Alex Liebman-Peláez author Jon Kruppe author Resham Babu Regmi author Nirmal J. Ghimire author Yue Sun author Igor I. Mazin author Hilary M. L. Noad author James Analytis author Veronika Sunko author 23cb1cf6-2c7a-11ef-91a4-f72fc19f20b30000-0003-2724-3523 Joseph Orenstein author VeSu department Altermagnetism has recently emerged as a distinct class of collinear antiferromagnets that break time-reversal symmetry, exhibiting a host of novel properties. Applied strain has attracted particular attention as a key tuning parameter for altermagnets. Although several experimental studies have demonstrated the preparation of single-domain states through a combination of applied strain and magnetic field, the route to such states remains unclear. Here, we use magneto-optical measurements on single crystals of MnTe under applied strain to show that, in contrast to previous reports, strain acts primarily to rotate the Néel vector L continuously. Since the orientation of L determines the magnetic point group symmetry, this continuous rotation effectively tunes the symmetry and its associated physical properties. Furthermore, we demonstrate that built-in strain in free-standing crystals is sufficient to pin L into continuous textures over millimeter length scales. Together, these results provide guidance for future device design and open the door to leveraging the Néel vector orientation as a tunable degree of freedom in spintronic applications. 2026 eng arXiv 2604.0765310.48550/arXiv.2604.07653 Alex Liebman-Peláez AL-P, Kruppe J, Regmi RB, Ghimire NJ, Sun Y, Mazin II, Noad HML, Analytis J, Sunko V, Orenstein J. Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe. arXiv, 2604.07653. Alex Liebman-Peláez, Alex Liebman-Peláez, et al. “Strain Continuously Rotates the Néel Vector in Altermagnetic MnTe.” ArXiv, 2604.07653, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653">10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653</a>. A.L.-P. Alex Liebman-Peláez, J. Kruppe, R.B. Regmi, N.J. Ghimire, Y. Sun, I.I. Mazin, H.M.L. Noad, J. Analytis, V. Sunko, J. Orenstein, ArXiv (n.d.). Alex Liebman-Peláez, Alex Liebman-Peláez, Jon Kruppe, Resham Babu Regmi, Nirmal J. Ghimire, Yue Sun, Igor I. Mazin, Hilary M. L. Noad, James Analytis, Veronika Sunko, and Joseph Orenstein. “Strain Continuously Rotates the Néel Vector in Altermagnetic MnTe.” ArXiv, n.d. <a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653">https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653</a>. Alex Liebman-Peláez AL-P, Kruppe J, Regmi RB, et al. Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe. arXiv. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653">10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653</a> Alex Liebman-Peláez, A. L.-P., Kruppe, J., Regmi, R. B., Ghimire, N. J., Sun, Y., Mazin, I. I., … Orenstein, J. (n.d.). Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe. arXiv. <a href="https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653">https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.07653</a> A. L.-P. Alex Liebman-Peláez et al., “Strain continuously rotates the Néel vector in altermagnetic MnTe,” arXiv. . 217032026-04-10T14:17:21Z2026-05-04T06:27:12Z