  A spin valve is a prototype of spin-based electronic devices found on
ferromagnets, in which an antiferromagnet plays a supporting role. Recent
findings in antiferromagnetic spintronics show that an antiferromagnetic order
in single-phase materials solely governs dynamic transport, and
antiferromagnets are considered promising candidates for spintronic technology.
In this work, we demonstrated antiferromagnet-based spintronic functionality on
an itinerant Ising antiferromagnet of Ca0.9Sr0.1Co2As2 by integrating nanoscale
spin-valve-type structure and investigating anisotropic magnetic properties
driven by spin-flips. Multiple stacks of 1 nm thick spin-valve-like unit are
intrinsically embedded in the antiferromagnetic spin structure. In the presence
of a rotating magnetic field, a new type of the spin-valve-like operation was
observed for large anomalous Hall conductivity and anisotropic
magnetoresistance, whose effects are maximized above the spin-flip transition.
In addition, a joint experimental and theoretical study provides an efficient
tool to read out various spin states, which scheme can be useful for
implementing extensive spintronic applications.
