Negative magnetoresistance in the antiferromagnetic semimetal V_1/3TaS₂

Intercalated transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) attract much attention due to their rich properties and potential applications. In this article, we grew successfully high-quality V_1/3TaS₂ crystals by a vapor transport method. We measured the magnetization, longitudinal resistivity ρ_xx(T, H), Hall resistivity ρ_xy(T, H), as well as performed calculations of the electronic band structure. It was found that V_1/3TaS₂ is an A-type antiferromagnet with the Neel temperature T_N = 6.20 K, and exhibits a negative magnetoresistance (MR) near T_N. Both band structure calculations and Hall resistivity measurements demonstrated it is a magnetic semimetal.