  The coexistence of multiple ferroic orders, i.e. multiferroicity, is a scarce
property to be found in materials. Historically, this state has been found
mainly in 3-dimensional complex oxides, but so far this state has still been
elusive for the most widely studied and characterized family of 2-dimensional
compounds, the transition metal dichalcogenides. In this study we report the
experimental realization of multiferroic states in this family of materials, at
room temperature, in bulk single crystals of Te-doped WSe2. We observe the
coexistence of ferromagnetism and ferroelectricity, evidenced in the presence
of magnetization and piezoresponse force microscopy hysteresis loops. These
findings open the possibility of widening the use and study of van der
Waals-based multifunctional devices for new nanoelectronics and spintronics
applications.
