  The electronic and magnetic properties of ZrS2 nanoribbons (NRs) are
investigated based on the first-principles calculations. It is found that the
ZrS2 NRs with armchair edges are all indirect-band-gap semiconductors without
magnetism and the band-gap exhibits odd-even oscillation behavior with the
increase of the ribbon width. For the NRs with zigzag edges, those with both
edges S-terminated are nonmagnetic direct-band-gap semiconductors and the gap
decreases monotonically as a function of the ribbon width. However, the NRs
with one edge S-terminated and the other edge Zr-terminated are ferromagnetic
half-metal, while those with both edges Zr-terminated tend to be ferromagnetic
half-metal when the width $N\geq9$. The magnetism of both systems mainly
originates from the unsaturated edge Zr atoms. Depending on the different edge
configurations and ribbon widths, the ZrS2 NRs exhibit versatile electronic and
magnetic properties, making them promising candidates for the applications of
electronics and spintronics.
