In a p–n junction, the separation of positive and negative charges leads to diode transport, in which charge flows in only one direction. Non-centrosymmetric polar conductors are intrinsic diodes that could be of use in the development of nonlinear applications. Such systems have recently been extended to non-centrosymmetric superconductors, and the superconducting diode effect has been observed. Here, we report an antiferromagnetic diode effect in a centrosymmetric crystal without directional charge separation. We observed large second-harmonic transport in a nonlinear electronic device enabled by the compensated antiferromagnetic state of even-layered MnBi₂Te₄. We show that this antiferromagnetic diode effect can be used to create in-plane field-effect transistors and microwave-energy-harvesting devices. We also show that electrical sum-frequency generation can be used as a tool to detect nonlinear responses in quantum materials.

在 ap-n 结中，正电荷和负电荷的分离导致二极管传输，其中电荷仅沿一个方向流动。非中心对称极性导体是本征二极管，可用于非线性应用的开发。这种系统最近已扩展到非中心对称超导体，并且已经观察到超导二极管效应。在这里，我们报告了中心对称晶体中没有定向电荷分离的反铁磁二极管效应。我们在非线性电子器件中观察到了由偶数层 MnBi ₂ Te ₄的补偿反铁磁态实现的大量二次谐波输运。我们证明，这种反铁磁二极管效应可用于创建面内场效应晶体管和微波能量收集设备。我们还表明，电和频生成可以用作检测量子材料中非线性响应的工具。