1
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Zhao L, Hua C, Song C, Yu W, Jiang W. Realization of skyrmion shift register. Sci Bull (Beijing) 2024; 69:2370-2378. [PMID: 38960814 DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2024.05.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 04/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/23/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
The big data explosion demands novel data storage technology. Among many different approaches, solitonic racetrack memory devices hold great promise for accommodating nonvolatile and low-power functionalities. As representative topological solitons, magnetic skyrmions are envisioned as potential information carriers for efficient information processing. While their advantages as memory and logic elements have been vastly exploited from theoretical perspectives, the corresponding experimental efforts are rather limited. These challenges, which are key to versatile skyrmionic devices, will be studied in this work. Through patterning concaved surface topography with designed arrays of indentations on standard Si/SiO2 substrates, we demonstrate that the resultant non-flat energy landscape could lead to the formation of hexagonal and square skyrmion lattices in Ta/CoFeB/MgO multilayers. Based on these films, one-dimensional racetrack devices are subsequently fabricated, in which a long-distance deterministic shifting of skyrmions between neighboring indentations is achieved at room temperature. Through separating the word line and the bit line, a prototype shift register device, which can sequentially generate and precisely shift complex skyrmionic data strings, is presented. The deterministic writing and long-distance shifting of skyrmionic bits can find potential applications in transformative skyrmionic memory, logic as well as the in-memory computing devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Le Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics and Department of Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Frontier Science Center for Quantum Information, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Chensong Hua
- State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics and Institute for Nanoelectronic Devices and Quantum Computing, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China; Zhangjiang Fudan International Innovation Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Chengkun Song
- State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics and Department of Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Frontier Science Center for Quantum Information, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Weichao Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics and Institute for Nanoelectronic Devices and Quantum Computing, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China; Zhangjiang Fudan International Innovation Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 201210, China.
| | - Wanjun Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics and Department of Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Frontier Science Center for Quantum Information, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
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2
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Zhou Y, Li S, Liang X, Zhou Y. Topological Spin Textures: Basic Physics and Devices. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024:e2312935. [PMID: 38861696 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202312935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024]
Abstract
In the face of escalating modern data storage demands and the constraints of Moore's Law, exploring spintronic solutions, particularly the devices based on magnetic skyrmions, has emerged as a promising frontier in scientific research. Since the first experimental observation of skyrmions, topological spin textures have been extensively studied for their great potential as efficient information carriers in spintronic devices. However, significant challenges have emerged alongside this progress. This review aims to synthesize recent advances in skyrmion research while addressing the major issues encountered in the field. Additionally, current research on promising topological spin structures in addition to skyrmions is summarized. Beyond 2D structures, exploration also extends to 1D magnetic solitons and 3D spin textures. In addition, a diverse array of emerging magnetic materials is introduced, including antiferromagnets and 2D van der Waals magnets, broadening the scope of potential materials hosting topological spin textures. Through a systematic examination of magnetic principles, topological categorization, and the dynamics of spin textures, a comprehensive overview of experimental and theoretical advances in the research of topological magnetism is provided. Finally, both conventional and unconventional applications are summarized based on spin textures proposed thus far. This review provides an outlook on future development in applied spintronics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Zhou
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518172, China
| | - Shuang Li
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518172, China
| | - Xue Liang
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518172, China
| | - Yan Zhou
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518172, China
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3
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Zhang C, Jiang Z, Jiang J, He W, Zhang J, Hu F, Zhao S, Yang D, Liu Y, Peng Y, Yang H, Yang H. Above-room-temperature chiral skyrmion lattice and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in a van der Waals ferromagnet Fe 3-xGaTe 2. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4472. [PMID: 38796498 PMCID: PMC11127993 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48799-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 05/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Skyrmions in existing 2D van der Waals (vdW) materials have primarily been limited to cryogenic temperatures, and the underlying physical mechanism of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI), a crucial ingredient for stabilizing chiral skyrmions, remains inadequately explored. Here, we report the observation of Néel-type skyrmions in a vdW ferromagnet Fe3-xGaTe2 above room temperature. Contrary to previous assumptions of centrosymmetry in Fe3-xGaTe2, the atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy reveals that the off-centered FeΙΙ atoms break the spatial inversion symmetry, rendering it a polar metal. First-principles calculations further elucidate that the DMI primarily stems from the Te sublayers through the Fert-Lévy mechanism. Remarkably, the chiral skyrmion lattice in Fe3-xGaTe2 can persist up to 330 K at zero magnetic field, demonstrating superior thermal stability compared to other known skyrmion vdW magnets. This work provides valuable insights into skyrmionics and presents promising prospects for 2D material-based skyrmion devices operating beyond room temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenhui Zhang
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore
| | - Ze Jiang
- School of Materials and Energy and Electron Microscopy Centre of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Jiawei Jiang
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, School of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093, China
| | - Wa He
- School of Materials and Energy and Electron Microscopy Centre of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Junwei Zhang
- School of Materials and Energy and Electron Microscopy Centre of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Fanrui Hu
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore
| | - Shishun Zhao
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore
| | - Dongsheng Yang
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore
| | - Yakun Liu
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore
| | - Yong Peng
- School of Materials and Energy and Electron Microscopy Centre of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China.
| | - Hongxin Yang
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, School of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093, China.
- Center for Quantum Matter, School of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
| | - Hyunsoo Yang
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore.
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4
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Li Z, Yin Q, Lv W, Shen J, Wang S, Zhao T, Cai J, Lei H, Lin SZ, Zhang Y, Shen B. Electron-Assisted Generation and Straight Movement of Skyrmion Bubble in Kagome TbMn 6Sn 6. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024; 36:e2309538. [PMID: 38366361 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202309538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 12/31/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
Topological magnetic textures are promising candidates as binary data units for the next-generation memory device. The precise generation and convenient control of nontrivial spin topology at zero field near room temperature endows the critical advantages in skyrmionic devices but is not simultaneously integrated into one material. Here, in the Kagome plane of quantum TbMn6Sn6, the expedient generation of the skyrmion bubbles in versatile forms of lattice, chain, and isolated one by converging the electron beam, where the electron intensity gradient contributes to the dynamic generation from local anisotropy variation near spin reorientation transition (SRT) is reported. Encouragingly, by utilizing the dynamic shift of the SRT domain interface, the straight movement is actualized with the skyrmion bubble slave to the SRT domain interface forming an elastic composite object, avoiding the usual deflection from the skyrmion Hall effect. The critical contribution of the SRT domain interface via conveniently electron-assisted heating is further theoretically validated in micromagnetic simulation, highlighting the compatible application possibility in advanced devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhuolin Li
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China
| | - Qiangwei Yin
- Department of Physics and Beijing Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Functional Materials & MicroNano Devices, Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
- Key Laboratory of Quantum State Construction and Manipulation (Ministry of Education), Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
| | - Wenxin Lv
- Department of Physics and Beijing Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Functional Materials & MicroNano Devices, Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
- Key Laboratory of Quantum State Construction and Manipulation (Ministry of Education), Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
| | - Jun Shen
- Department of Energy and Power Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, 100081, China
| | - Shouguo Wang
- Anhui Key Laboratory of Magnetic Functional Materials and Devices, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, 230601, China
| | - Tongyun Zhao
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China
| | - Jianwang Cai
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China
| | - Hechang Lei
- Department of Physics and Beijing Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Functional Materials & MicroNano Devices, Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
- Key Laboratory of Quantum State Construction and Manipulation (Ministry of Education), Renmin University of China, Beijing, 100872, China
| | - Shi-Zeng Lin
- Theoretical Division and Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico, 87545, USA
| | - Ying Zhang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China
- Open Access Research Infrastrucure, Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Baogen Shen
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China
- Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology & Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315201, China
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5
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Yang S, Shen L, Zhao Y, Wu K, Li X, Shen K, Zhang S, Xu X, Åkerman J, Zhou Y. Generation of skyrmions by combining thermal and spin-orbit torque: breaking half skyrmions into skyrmions. NANOSCALE 2024; 16:7068-7075. [PMID: 38450557 DOI: 10.1039/d3nr05803d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Skyrmions, swirling spin textures with topologically protected stability and low critical driven-current density, can be generated from the stripe domain with current pulses, bringing them closer to practical applications in racetrack memory. However, the mechanism of this topological transition from the stripe domain to the skyrmion remains unclear because the transition process occurs at a nanosecond timescale, giving rise to difficulties in observing this process using imaging tools. In this study, we controlled the domain wall - skyrmion transition by combining Joule heating with spin-orbit torque (SOT) and experimentally observed the details of this process, by which we confirmed the mechanism: the spatial variation of the topological charge density induces half skyrmions branching from the stripe domains, and these half skyrmions overcome the surface tension and break away from the stripe domain, resulting in the generation of skyrmions. The details were observed by employing Joule heating to overcome the pinning effect and manipulating the strength of the SOT to induce the branching and breaking of half skyrmions. These findings offer new insights into skyrmion generation and serve as an important step towards the development of highly efficient devices for processing and computing based on skyrmionics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheng Yang
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518172, China.
| | - Laichuan Shen
- The Center for Advanced Quantum Studies and Department of Physics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
- Key Laboratory of Multi-scale Spin Physics, Ministry of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Yuelei Zhao
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518172, China.
| | - Kai Wu
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518172, China.
| | - Xiaoguang Li
- Center for Advanced Material Diagnostic Technology, College of Engineering Physics, Shenzhen Technology University, Shenzhen, 518118, China
| | - Ka Shen
- The Center for Advanced Quantum Studies and Department of Physics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
- Key Laboratory of Multi-scale Spin Physics, Ministry of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Senfu Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of the Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Xiaohong Xu
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science of Shanxi Normal University & Key Laboratory of Magnetic Molecules and Magnetic Information Materials of Ministry of Education, Taiyuan, 030006, China
- Research Institute of Materials Science of Shanxi Normal University & Collaborative Innovation Center for Shanxi Advanced Permanent Magnetic Materials and Technology, Taiyuan, 030006, China
| | - Johan Åkerman
- Department of Physics, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, 41296, Sweden
- Science and Innovation in Spintronics Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Aoba-ku, 980-8577, Japan
| | - Yan Zhou
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518172, China.
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6
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Wu N, Zhang S, Chen D, Wang Y, Meng S. Three-stage ultrafast demagnetization dynamics in a monolayer ferromagnet. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2804. [PMID: 38555344 PMCID: PMC10981666 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47128-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Intense laser pulses can be used to demagnetize a magnetic material on an extremely short timescale. While this ultrafast demagnetization offers the potential for new magneto-optical devices, it poses challenges in capturing coupled spin-electron and spin-lattice dynamics. In this article, we study the photoinduced ultrafast demagnetization of a prototype monolayer ferromagnet Fe3GeTe2 and resolve the three-stage demagnetization process characterized by an ultrafast and substantial demagnetization on a timescale of 100 fs, followed by light-induced coherent A1g phonon dynamics which is strongly coupled to the spin dynamics in the next 200-800 fs. In the third stage, chiral lattice vibrations driven by nonlinear phonon couplings, both in-plane and out-of-plane are produced, resulting in significant spin precession. Nonadiabatic effects are found to introduce considerable phonon hardening and suppress the spin-lattice couplings during demagnetization. Our results advance our understanding of dynamic charge-spin-lattice couplings in the ultrafast demagnetization and evidence angular momentum transfer between the phonon and spin degrees of freedom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na Wu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Shengjie Zhang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Daqiang Chen
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Yaxian Wang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China.
| | - Sheng Meng
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China.
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China.
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7
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Urrestarazu Larrañaga J, Sisodia N, Guedas R, Pham VT, Di Manici I, Masseboeuf A, Garello K, Disdier F, Fernandez B, Wintz S, Weigand M, Belmeguenai M, Pizzini S, Sousa RC, Buda-Prejbeanu LD, Gaudin G, Boulle O. Electrical Detection and Nucleation of a Magnetic Skyrmion in a Magnetic Tunnel Junction Observed via Operando Magnetic Microscopy. NANO LETTERS 2024; 24:3557-3565. [PMID: 38499397 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c00316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/20/2024]
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions are topological spin textures which are envisioned as nanometer scale information carriers in magnetic memory and logic devices. The recent demonstrations of room temperature skyrmions and their current induced manipulation in ultrathin films were first steps toward the realization of such devices. However, important challenges remain regarding the electrical detection and the low-power nucleation of skyrmions, which are required for the read and write operations. Here, we demonstrate, using operando magnetic microscopy experiments, the electrical detection of a single magnetic skyrmion in a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) and its nucleation and annihilation by gate voltage via voltage control of magnetic anisotropy. The nucleated skyrmion can be manipulated by both gate voltages and external magnetic fields, leading to tunable intermediate resistance states. Our results unambiguously demonstrate the readout and voltage controlled write operations in a single MTJ device, which is a major milestone for low power skyrmion based technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Naveen Sisodia
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Rodrigo Guedas
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Van Tuong Pham
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Institut Néel, 38042 Grenoble, France
| | - Ilaria Di Manici
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Aurélien Masseboeuf
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Kevin Garello
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Florian Disdier
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Bruno Fernandez
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Institut Néel, 38042 Grenoble, France
| | - Sebastian Wintz
- Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Heisenbergstraße 3, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH, D-14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Markus Weigand
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH, D-14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Mohamed Belmeguenai
- LSPM (CNRS-UPR 3407), Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, 99 Avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 93430 Villetaneuse, France
| | - Stefania Pizzini
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Institut Néel, 38042 Grenoble, France
| | - Ricardo C Sousa
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | | | - Gilles Gaudin
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Olivier Boulle
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, Grenoble INP, SPINTEC, 38000 Grenoble, France
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8
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Zhu K, Bi L, Zhang Y, Zheng D, Yang D, Li J, Tian H, Cai J, Yang H, Zhang Y, Li J. Ultrafast switching to zero field topological spin textures in ferrimagnetic TbFeCo films. NANOSCALE 2024; 16:3133-3143. [PMID: 38258484 DOI: 10.1039/d3nr04529c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
The capability of femtosecond (fs) laser pulses to manipulate topological spin textures on a very short time scale is sparking considerable interest. This article presents the creation of high density zero field topological spin textures by fs laser excitation in ferrimagnetic TbFeCo amorphous films. The topological spin textures are demonstrated to emerge under fs laser pulse excitation through a unique ultrafast nucleation mechanism, rather than thermal effects. Notably, large intrinsic uniaxial anisotropy could substitute the external magnetic field for the creation and stabilization of topological spin textures, which is further verified by the corresponding micromagnetic simulation. The ultrafast switching between topological trivial and nontrivial magnetic states is realized at an optimum magnitude of magnetic field and laser fluence. Our results would broaden the options to generate zero-field topological spin textures from versatile magnetic states and provides a new perspective for ultrafast switching of 0/1 magnetic states in spintronic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaixin Zhu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Linzhu Bi
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yongzhao Zhang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dingguo Zheng
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dong Yang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jun Li
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
| | - Huanfang Tian
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
| | - Jianwang Cai
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
| | - Huaixin Yang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Yangtze River Delta Physics Research Center Co., Ltd., Liyang, Jiangsu, 213300, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Jianqi Li
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
- School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
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9
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Meng Y, Meng F, Hou M, Zheng Q, Wang B, Zhu R, Feng C, Yu G. Regulation of interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction in ferromagnetic multilayers. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2024; 36:193001. [PMID: 38286006 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ad2386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024]
Abstract
Interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (i-DMI) exists in the film materials with inversion symmetry breaking, which can stabilize a series of nonlinear spin structures and control their chirality, such as Néel-type domain wall, magnetic skyrmion and spin spiral. In addition, the strength and chirality of i-DMI are directly related to the dynamic behavior of these nonlinear spin structures. Therefore, regulating the strength and chirality of i-DMI not only has an important scientific significance for enriching spintronics and topological physics, but also has a significant practical value for constructing a new generation of memorizer, logic gate, and brain-like devices with low-power. This review summarizes the research progress on the regulation of i-DMI in ferromagnetic films and provides some prospects for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yufei Meng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Fei Meng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Mingxuan Hou
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Qianqi Zheng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Boyi Wang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Ronggui Zhu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Chun Feng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
| | - Guanghua Yu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, People's Republic of China
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10
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Li Z, Zhang H, Li G, Guo J, Wang Q, Deng Y, Hu Y, Hu X, Liu C, Qin M, Shen X, Yu R, Gao X, Liao Z, Liu J, Hou Z, Zhu Y, Fu X. Room-temperature sub-100 nm Néel-type skyrmions in non-stoichiometric van der Waals ferromagnet Fe 3-xGaTe 2 with ultrafast laser writability. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1017. [PMID: 38310096 PMCID: PMC10838308 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45310-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Realizing room-temperature magnetic skyrmions in two-dimensional van der Waals ferromagnets offers unparalleled prospects for future spintronic applications. However, due to the intrinsic spin fluctuations that suppress atomic long-range magnetic order and the inherent inversion crystal symmetry that excludes the presence of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, achieving room-temperature skyrmions in 2D magnets remains a formidable challenge. In this study, we target room-temperature 2D magnet Fe3GaTe2 and unveil that the introduction of iron-deficient into this compound enables spatial inversion symmetry breaking, thus inducing a significant Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction that brings about room-temperature Néel-type skyrmions with unprecedentedly small size. To further enhance the practical applications of this finding, we employ a homemade in-situ optical Lorentz transmission electron microscopy to demonstrate ultrafast writing of skyrmions in Fe3-xGaTe2 using a single femtosecond laser pulse. Our results manifest the Fe3-xGaTe2 as a promising building block for realizing skyrmion-based magneto-optical functionalities.
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Grants
- This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China at grant No. 2020YFA0309300, Science and Technology Projects in Guangzhou (grant No. 202201000008), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) at grant No. 12304146, 11974191, 12127803, 52322108, 52271178, U22A20117 and 12241403, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2023M741828), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (grant No. 2021B1515120047 and 2023B1515020112), the Natural Science Foundation of Tianjin at grant No. 20JCJQJC00210, the 111 Project at grant No. B23045, and the “Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities”, Nankai University (grant No. 63213040, C029211101, C02922101, ZB22000104 and DK2300010207). This work was supported by the Synergetic Extreme Condition User Facility (SECUF).
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Affiliation(s)
- Zefang Li
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Huai Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guanqi Li
- School of Integrated Circuits, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiangteng Guo
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Qingping Wang
- School of Physics and Electronic and Electrical Engineering, Aba Teachers University, Wenchuan, China
| | - Ying Deng
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yue Hu
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xuange Hu
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Can Liu
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Minghui Qin
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xi Shen
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Richeng Yu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xingsen Gao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhimin Liao
- State Key Laboratory for Mesoscopic Physics and Frontiers Science Center for Nano-optoelectronics, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Junming Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
- Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Zhipeng Hou
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Yimei Zhu
- Condensed Matter Physics and Materials Science Department, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York, USA.
| | - Xuewen Fu
- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary Science Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
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11
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Zhao Y, Wang J, Xu L, Yu P, Hou M, Meng F, Xie S, Meng Y, Zhu R, Hou Z, Yang M, Luo J, Wu J, Xu Y, Gao X, Feng C, Yu G. Local Manipulation of Skyrmion Nucleation in Microscale Areas of a Thin Film with Nitrogen-Ion Implantation. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2023. [PMID: 36888898 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c00266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Precise manipulation of skyrmion nucleation in microscale or nanoscale areas of thin films is a critical issue in developing high-efficient skyrmionic memories and logic devices. Presently, the mainstream controlling strategies focus on the application of external stimuli to tailor the intrinsic attributes of charge, spin, and lattice. This work reports effective skyrmion manipulation by controllably modifying the lattice defect through ion implantation, which is potentially compatible with large-scale integrated circuit technology. By implanting an appropriate dose of nitrogen ions into a Pt/Co/Ta multilayer film, the defect density was effectively enhanced to induce an apparent modulation of magnetic anisotropy, consequently boosting the skyrmion nucleation. Furthermore, the local control of skyrmions in microscale areas of the macroscopic film was realized by combining the ion implantation with micromachining technology, demonstrating a potential application in both binary storage and multistate storage. These findings provide a new approach to advancing the functionalization and application of skyrmionic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongkang Zhao
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Junlin Wang
- School of Integrated Circuits, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Lianxin Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials and Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Peiyue Yu
- Key Laboratory of Microelectronic Devices and Integrated Technology, Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMECAS), Beijing 100029, China
| | - Mingxuan Hou
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Fei Meng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Shuai Xie
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Yufei Meng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Ronggui Zhu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Zhipeng Hou
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials and Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Meiyin Yang
- Key Laboratory of Microelectronic Devices and Integrated Technology, Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMECAS), Beijing 100029, China
| | - Jun Luo
- Key Laboratory of Microelectronic Devices and Integrated Technology, Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMECAS), Beijing 100029, China
| | - Jing Wu
- School of Integrated Circuits, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
- York-Nanjing International Center of Spintronics (YNICS), York University, York YO10 3LT, U.K
| | - Yongbing Xu
- School of Integrated Circuits, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
- York-Nanjing International Center of Spintronics (YNICS), York University, York YO10 3LT, U.K
| | - Xingsen Gao
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials and Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Chun Feng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Guanghua Yu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
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12
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Zhang W, Huang TX, Hehn M, Malinowski G, Verges M, Hohlfeld J, Remy Q, Lacour D, Wang XR, Zhao GP, Vallobra P, Xu Y, Mangin S, Zhao WS. Optical Creation of Skyrmions by Spin Reorientation Transition in Ferrimagnetic CoHo Alloys. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2023; 15:5608-5619. [PMID: 36689950 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c19411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Manipulating magnetic skyrmions by means of a femtosecond (fs) laser pulse has attracted great interest due to their promising applications in efficient information-storage devices with ultralow energy consumption. However, the mechanism underlying the creation of skyrmions induced by an fs laser is still lacking. As a result, a key challenge is to reveal the pathway for the massive reorientation of magnetization from trivial to nontrivial topological states. Here, we studied a series of ferrimagnetic CoHo alloys and investigated the effect of a single laser pulse on the magnetic states. Thanks to the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect and imaging techniques, we demonstrate that the laser-induced phase transitions from single domains into a topological skyrmion phase are mediated by the transient in-plane magnetization state, in real time and space domains, respectively. Combining experiments and micromagnetic simulations, we propose a two-step process for creating skyrmions through laser pulse irradiation: (i) the electron temperature enhancement induces a spin reorientation transition on a picosecond (ps) timescale due to the suppression of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) and (ii) the PMA slowly restores, accompanied by out-of-plane magnetization recovery, leading to the generation of skyrmions with the help of spin fluctuations. This work provides a route to control skyrmion patterns using an fs laser, thereby establishing the foundation for further exploration of topological magnetism at ultrafast timescales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Zhang
- Anhui High Reliability Chips Engineering Laboratory, Hefei Innovation Research Institute, Beihang University, Hefei230013, China
- MIIT Key Laboratory of Spintronics, School of Integrated Circuit Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing100191, China
- CNRS, IJL, Université de Lorraine, NancyF-54000, France
| | | | - Michel Hehn
- CNRS, IJL, Université de Lorraine, NancyF-54000, France
| | | | - Maxime Verges
- CNRS, IJL, Université de Lorraine, NancyF-54000, France
| | | | - Quentin Remy
- CNRS, IJL, Université de Lorraine, NancyF-54000, France
| | - Daniel Lacour
- CNRS, IJL, Université de Lorraine, NancyF-54000, France
| | - Xin Ran Wang
- MIIT Key Laboratory of Spintronics, School of Integrated Circuit Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing100191, China
| | - Guo Ping Zhao
- College of Physics and Electronic Engineering and Institute of Solid State Physics, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu610066, China
| | - Pierre Vallobra
- Anhui High Reliability Chips Engineering Laboratory, Hefei Innovation Research Institute, Beihang University, Hefei230013, China
| | - Yong Xu
- Anhui High Reliability Chips Engineering Laboratory, Hefei Innovation Research Institute, Beihang University, Hefei230013, China
- MIIT Key Laboratory of Spintronics, School of Integrated Circuit Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing100191, China
| | | | - Wei Sheng Zhao
- Anhui High Reliability Chips Engineering Laboratory, Hefei Innovation Research Institute, Beihang University, Hefei230013, China
- MIIT Key Laboratory of Spintronics, School of Integrated Circuit Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing100191, China
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13
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Yang S, Ju TS, Kim C, Kim HJ, An K, Moon KW, Park S, Hwang C. Magnetic Field Magnitudes Needed for Skyrmion Generation in a General Perpendicularly Magnetized Film. NANO LETTERS 2022; 22:8430-8436. [PMID: 36282733 PMCID: PMC9650724 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c02268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Revised: 10/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Due to its topological protection, the magnetic skyrmion has been intensively studied for both fundamental aspects and spintronics applications. However, despite recent advancements in skyrmion research, the deterministic creation of isolated skyrmions in a generic perpendicularly magnetized film is still one of the most essential and challenging techniques. Here, we present a method to create magnetic skyrmions in typical perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) films by applying a magnetic field pulse and a method to determine the magnitude of the required external magnetic fields. Furthermore, to demonstrate the usefulness of this result for future skyrmion research, we also experimentally study the PMA dependence on the minimum size of skyrmions. Although field-driven skyrmion generation is unsuitable for device application, this result can provide an easier approach for obtaining isolated skyrmions, making skyrmion-based research more accessible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seungmo Yang
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Tae-Seong Ju
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
- Department
of Physics, Pusan National University, Busan46241, Republic of Korea
| | - Changsoo Kim
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyun-Joong Kim
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyongmo An
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyoung-Woong Moon
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Sungkyun Park
- Department
of Physics, Pusan National University, Busan46241, Republic of Korea
| | - Chanyong Hwang
- Quantum
Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards
and Science, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
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14
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Olleros-Rodríguez P, Strungaru M, Ruta S, Gavriloaea PI, Gudín A, Perna P, Chantrell R, Chubykalo-Fesenko O. Non-equilibrium heating path for the laser-induced nucleation of metastable skyrmion lattices. NANOSCALE 2022; 14:15701-15712. [PMID: 36124690 DOI: 10.1039/d2nr03903f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Understanding formation of metastable phases by rapid energy pumping and quenching has been intriguing scientists for a long time. This issue is crucial for technologically relevant systems such as magnetic skyrmions which are frequently metastable at zero field. Using Atomistic Spin Dynamics simulations, we show the possibility of creating metastable skyrmion lattices in cobalt-based trilayers by femtosecond laser heating. Similar to the formation of supercooled ice droplets in the gas phase, high temperature ultrafast excitation creates magnon drops and their fast relaxation leads to acquisition and quenching of the skyrmion topological protection. The interplay between different processes corresponds to a specific excitation window which can be additionally controlled by external fields. The results are contrasted with longer-scale heating leading to a phase transition to the stable states. Our results provide insight into the dynamics of the highly non-equilibrium pathway for spin excitations and pave additional routes for skyrmion-based information technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mara Strungaru
- Department of Physics, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK
| | - Sergiu Ruta
- Department of Physics, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK
| | - Paul-Iulian Gavriloaea
- Department of Physics, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK
- Materials Science Institute ICMM-CSIC, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Adrián Gudín
- IMDEA Nanoscience Institute, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Paolo Perna
- IMDEA Nanoscience Institute, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
| | - Roy Chantrell
- Department of Physics, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK
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15
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Juge R, Sisodia N, Larrañaga JU, Zhang Q, Pham VT, Rana KG, Sarpi B, Mille N, Stanescu S, Belkhou R, Mawass MA, Novakovic-Marinkovic N, Kronast F, Weigand M, Gräfe J, Wintz S, Finizio S, Raabe J, Aballe L, Foerster M, Belmeguenai M, Buda-Prejbeanu LD, Pelloux-Prayer J, Shaw JM, Nembach HT, Ranno L, Gaudin G, Boulle O. Skyrmions in synthetic antiferromagnets and their nucleation via electrical current and ultra-fast laser illumination. Nat Commun 2022; 13:4807. [PMID: 35974009 PMCID: PMC9381802 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32525-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions are topological spin textures that hold great promise as nanoscale information carriers in non-volatile memory and logic devices. While room-temperature magnetic skyrmions and their current-induced motion were recently demonstrated, the stray field resulting from their finite magnetisation and their topological charge limit their minimum size and reliable motion. Antiferromagnetic skyrmions allow to lift these limitations owing to their vanishing magnetisation and net zero topological charge, promising ultra-small and ultra-fast skyrmions. Here, we report on the observation of isolated skyrmions in compensated synthetic antiferromagnets at zero field and room temperature using X-ray magnetic microscopy. Micromagnetic simulations and an analytical model confirm the chiral antiferromagnetic nature of these skyrmions and allow the identification of the physical mechanisms controlling their size and stability. Finally, we demonstrate the nucleation of synthetic antiferromagnetic skyrmions via local current injection and ultra-fast laser excitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roméo Juge
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Naveen Sisodia
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | | | - Qiang Zhang
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Van Tuong Pham
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | | | - Brice Sarpi
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, 91190, Saint-Aubin, France
| | - Nicolas Mille
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, 91190, Saint-Aubin, France
| | - Stefan Stanescu
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, 91190, Saint-Aubin, France
| | - Rachid Belkhou
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, 91190, Saint-Aubin, France
| | - Mohamad-Assaad Mawass
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Albert-Einstein-Straße 15, 12489, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nina Novakovic-Marinkovic
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Albert-Einstein-Straße 15, 12489, Berlin, Germany
| | - Florian Kronast
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Albert-Einstein-Straße 15, 12489, Berlin, Germany
| | - Markus Weigand
- Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH, Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, D-14109, Berlin, Germany
| | - Joachim Gräfe
- Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Heisenbergstraße 3, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Sebastian Wintz
- Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Heisenbergstraße 3, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Simone Finizio
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232, Villigen, Switzerland
| | - Jörg Raabe
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232, Villigen, Switzerland
| | - Lucia Aballe
- ALBA Synchrotron Light Facility, 08290, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Michael Foerster
- ALBA Synchrotron Light Facility, 08290, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mohamed Belmeguenai
- Laboratoire des Sciences des Procedés et des Matériaux, CNRS, Univ. Paris 13, 93430, Villetaneuse, France
| | | | | | - Justin M Shaw
- Quantum Electromagnetics Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - Hans T Nembach
- Quantum Electromagnetics Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA.,Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - Laurent Ranno
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Institut Néel, 38042, Grenoble, France
| | - Gilles Gaudin
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France
| | - Olivier Boulle
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, CEA, SPINTEC, 38000, Grenoble, France.
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16
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Quessab Y, Xu JW, Cogulu E, Finizio S, Raabe J, Kent AD. Zero-Field Nucleation and Fast Motion of Skyrmions Induced by Nanosecond Current Pulses in a Ferrimagnetic Thin Film. NANO LETTERS 2022; 22:6091-6097. [PMID: 35877983 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c01038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Skyrmion racetrack memories are highly attractive for next-generation data storage technologies. Skyrmions are noncollinear spin textures stabilized by chiral interactions. To achieve a fast-operating memory device, it is critical to move skyrmions at high speeds. The skyrmion dynamics induced by spin-orbit torques (SOTs) in the commonly studied ferromagnetic films is hindered by strong pinning effects and a large skyrmion Hall effect causing deflection of the skyrmion toward the racetrack edge, which can lead to information loss. Here, we investigate the current-induced nucleation and motion of skyrmions in ferrimagnetic Pt/CoGd/(W or Ta) thin films. We first reveal field-free skyrmion nucleation mediated by Joule heating. We then achieve fast skyrmion motion driven by SOTs with velocities as high as 610 m s-1 and a small skyrmion Hall angle |θSkHE| ≲ 3°. Our results show that ferrimagnets are better candidates for fast skyrmion-based memory devices with low risk of information loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yassine Quessab
- Center for Quantum Phenomena, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, New York, 10003, United States
| | - Jun-Wen Xu
- Center for Quantum Phenomena, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, New York, 10003, United States
| | - Egecan Cogulu
- Center for Quantum Phenomena, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, New York, 10003, United States
| | - Simone Finizio
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - Jörg Raabe
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - Andrew D Kent
- Center for Quantum Phenomena, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, New York, 10003, United States
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17
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Pal B, Hazra BK, Göbel B, Jeon JC, Pandeya AK, Chakraborty A, Busch O, Srivastava AK, Deniz H, Taylor JM, Meyerheim H, Mertig I, Yang SH, Parkin SSP. Setting of the magnetic structure of chiral kagome antiferromagnets by a seeded spin-orbit torque. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabo5930. [PMID: 35704587 PMCID: PMC9200275 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abo5930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The current-induced spin-orbit torque switching of ferromagnets has had huge impact in spintronics. However, short spin-diffusion lengths limit the thickness of switchable ferromagnetic layers, thereby limiting their thermal stability. Here, we report a previously unobserved seeded spin-orbit torque (SSOT) by which current can set the magnetic states of even thick layers of the chiral kagome antiferromagnet Mn3Sn. The mechanism involves setting the orientation of the antiferromagnetic domains in a thin region at the interface with spin currents arising from an adjacent heavy metal while also heating the layer above its magnetic ordering temperature. This interface region seeds the resulting spin texture of the entire layer as it cools down and, thereby, overcomes the thickness limitation of conventional spin-orbit torques. SSOT switching in Mn3Sn can be extended beyond chiral antiferromagnets to diverse magnetic systems and provides a path toward the development of highly efficient, high-speed, and thermally stable spintronic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Banabir Pal
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Binoy K. Hazra
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Börge Göbel
- Institute of Physics, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06099 Halle, Germany
| | - Jae-Chun Jeon
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Avanindra K. Pandeya
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Anirban Chakraborty
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Oliver Busch
- Institute of Physics, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06099 Halle, Germany
| | - Abhay K. Srivastava
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Hakan Deniz
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - James M. Taylor
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Holger Meyerheim
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Ingrid Mertig
- Institute of Physics, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06099 Halle, Germany
| | - See-Hun Yang
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
| | - Stuart S. P. Parkin
- Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Weinberg 2, 06120 Halle, Germany
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18
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Sekiguchi F, Budzinauskas K, Padmanabhan P, Versteeg RB, Tsurkan V, Kézsmárki I, Foggetti F, Artyukhin S, van Loosdrecht PHM. Slowdown of photoexcited spin dynamics in the non-collinear spin-ordered phases in skyrmion host GaV 4S 8. Nat Commun 2022; 13:3212. [PMID: 35680864 PMCID: PMC9184521 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30829-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Formation of magnetic order alters the character of spin excitations, which then affects transport properties. We investigate the photoexcited ultrafast spin dynamics in different magnetic phases in Néel-type skyrmion host GaV4S8 with time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect experiments. The coherent spin precession, whose amplitude is enhanced in the skyrmion-lattice phase, shows a signature of phase coexistence across the magnetic phase transitions. The incoherent spin relaxation dynamics slows down by a factor of two in the skyrmion-lattice/cycloid phases, indicating significant decrease in thermal conductivity triggered by a small change of magnetic field. The slow heat diffusion in the skyrmion-lattice/cycloid phases is attributed to the stronger magnon scattering off the domain walls formed in abundance in the skyrmion-lattice/cycloid phase. These results highlight the impact of spatial spin structure on the ultrafast heat transport in spin systems, providing a useful insight for the step toward ultrafast photocontrol of the magnets with novel spin orders. Skyrmions are a topological magnetic texture that have garnered considerable interest for various technological applications. Here, Sekiguchi et al. investigate the ultrafast optical response of GaV4S6, and find a significant reduction in the thermal conductivity in the skyrmion phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fumiya Sekiguchi
- II. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Str. 77, D-50937, Köln, Germany.
| | - Kestutis Budzinauskas
- II. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Str. 77, D-50937, Köln, Germany
| | - Prashant Padmanabhan
- II. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Str. 77, D-50937, Köln, Germany
| | - Rolf B Versteeg
- II. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Str. 77, D-50937, Köln, Germany
| | - Vladimir Tsurkan
- Experimental Physics V, Center for Electronic Correlations and Magnetism, University of Augsburg, 86159, Augsburg, Germany.,Institute of Applied Physics, MD 2028, Chișinău, Republic of Moldova
| | - István Kézsmárki
- Experimental Physics V, Center for Electronic Correlations and Magnetism, University of Augsburg, 86159, Augsburg, Germany
| | - Francesco Foggetti
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163, Genova, Italy.,Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Genova, Via Dodecaneso, 33, 16146, Genova, Italy
| | - Sergey Artyukhin
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163, Genova, Italy
| | - Paul H M van Loosdrecht
- II. Physikalisches Institut, Universität zu Köln, Zülpicher Str. 77, D-50937, Köln, Germany.
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19
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Kern LM, Pfau B, Deinhart V, Schneider M, Klose C, Gerlinger K, Wittrock S, Engel D, Will I, Günther CM, Liefferink R, Mentink JH, Wintz S, Weigand M, Huang MJ, Battistelli R, Metternich D, Büttner F, Höflich K, Eisebitt S. Deterministic Generation and Guided Motion of Magnetic Skyrmions by Focused He +-Ion Irradiation. NANO LETTERS 2022; 22:4028-4035. [PMID: 35577328 PMCID: PMC9137908 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c00670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions are quasiparticles with nontrivial topology, envisioned to play a key role in next-generation data technology while simultaneously attracting fundamental research interest due to their emerging topological charge. In chiral magnetic multilayers, current-generated spin-orbit torques or ultrafast laser excitation can be used to nucleate isolated skyrmions on a picosecond time scale. Both methods, however, produce randomly arranged skyrmions, which inherently limits the precision on the location at which the skyrmions are nucleated. Here, we show that nanopatterning of the anisotropy landscape with a He+-ion beam creates well-defined skyrmion nucleation sites, thereby transforming the skyrmion localization into a deterministic process. This approach allows control of individual skyrmion nucleation as well as guided skyrmion motion with nanometer-scale precision, which is pivotal for both future fundamental studies of skyrmion dynamics and applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa-Marie Kern
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Bastian Pfau
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- E-mail:
| | - Victor Deinhart
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Ferdinand-Braun-Institut
gGmbH, Leibniz-Institut für Höchstfrequenztechnik, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Helmholtz-Zentrum
für Materialien und Energie GmbH, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michael Schneider
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Christopher Klose
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Kathinka Gerlinger
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Steffen Wittrock
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dieter Engel
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Ingo Will
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Christian M. Günther
- Technische
Universität Berlin, Zentraleinrichtung Elektronenmikroskopie (ZELMI), 10623 Berlin, Germany
| | - Rein Liefferink
- Radboud
University, Institute for
Molecules and Materials (IMM), 6525 AJ Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Johan H. Mentink
- Radboud
University, Institute for
Molecules and Materials (IMM), 6525 AJ Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Sebastian Wintz
- Max
Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Markus Weigand
- Helmholtz-Zentrum
für Materialien und Energie GmbH, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Meng-Jie Huang
- Deutsches
Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), 22607 Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Daniel Metternich
- Helmholtz-Zentrum
für Materialien und Energie GmbH, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Felix Büttner
- Helmholtz-Zentrum
für Materialien und Energie GmbH, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Katja Höflich
- Ferdinand-Braun-Institut
gGmbH, Leibniz-Institut für Höchstfrequenztechnik, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Helmholtz-Zentrum
für Materialien und Energie GmbH, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan Eisebitt
- Max
Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Technische
Universität Berlin, Institut für
Optik und Atomare Physik, 10623 Berlin, Germany
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20
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Turenne D, Yaroslavtsev A, Wang X, Unikandanuni V, Vaskivskyi I, Schneider M, Jal E, Carley R, Mercurio G, Gort R, Agarwal N, Van Kuiken B, Mercadier L, Schlappa J, Le Guyader L, Gerasimova N, Teichmann M, Lomidze D, Castoldi A, Potorochin D, Mukkattukavil D, Brock J, Zhou Hagström N, Reid AH, Shen X, Wang XJ, Maldonado P, Kvashnin Y, Carva K, Wang J, Takahashi YK, Fullerton EE, Eisebitt S, Oppeneer PM, Molodtsov S, Scherz A, Bonetti S, Iacocca E, Dürr HA. Nonequilibrium sub-10 nm spin-wave soliton formation in FePt nanoparticles. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabn0523. [PMID: 35363518 PMCID: PMC10938569 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn0523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic nanoparticles such as FePt in the L10 phase are the bedrock of our current data storage technology. As the grains become smaller to keep up with technological demands, the superparamagnetic limit calls for materials with higher magnetocrystalline anisotropy. This, in turn, reduces the magnetic exchange length to just a few nanometers, enabling magnetic structures to be induced within the nanoparticles. Here, we describe the existence of spin-wave solitons, dynamic localized bound states of spin-wave excitations, in FePt nanoparticles. We show with time-resolved x-ray diffraction and micromagnetic modeling that spin-wave solitons of sub-10 nm sizes form out of the demagnetized state following femtosecond laser excitation. The measured soliton spin precession frequency of 0.1 THz positions this system as a platform to develop novel miniature devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diego Turenne
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Alexander Yaroslavtsev
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | - Xiaocui Wang
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
| | | | - Igor Vaskivskyi
- Complex Matter Department, Jožef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | | | - Emmanuelle Jal
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Laboratoire de Chimie Physique-Matière et Rayonnement, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Robert Carley
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | | | - Rafael Gort
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | - Naman Agarwal
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - David Lomidze
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | - Andrea Castoldi
- Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Milano, Milano, Italy
| | - Dimitri Potorochin
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, 22607 Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Experimental Physics, Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg, 09599 Freiberg, Germany
| | | | - Jeffrey Brock
- Center for Memory and Recording Research, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0401, USA
| | | | - Alexander H. Reid
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA
| | - Xiaozhe Shen
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA
| | - Xijie J. Wang
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025, USA
| | - Pablo Maldonado
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Yaroslav Kvashnin
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Karel Carva
- Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Condensed Matter Physics, Charles University, Ke Karlovu 5, 121 16 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jian Wang
- Magnet Materials Unit, National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba 305-0047, Japan
| | - Yukiko K. Takahashi
- Magnet Materials Unit, National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba 305-0047, Japan
| | - Eric E. Fullerton
- Center for Memory and Recording Research, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0401, USA
| | - Stefan Eisebitt
- Max-Born-Institut, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Peter M. Oppeneer
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Serguei Molodtsov
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
- Institute of Experimental Physics, Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg, 09599 Freiberg, Germany
| | - Andreas Scherz
- European XFEL GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869 Schenefeld, Germany
| | - Stefano Bonetti
- Department of Physics, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Molecular Sciences and Nanosystems, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, 30172 Venice, Italy
| | - Ezio Iacocca
- Department of Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8ST, UK
- Center for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO 80918, USA
| | - Hermann A. Dürr
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, 751 20 Uppsala, Sweden
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21
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Yang X, Mou Y, Gallas B, Maitre A, Coolen L, Mivelle M. Tesla-Range Femtosecond Pulses of Stationary Magnetic Field, Optically Generated at the Nanoscale in a Plasmonic Antenna. ACS NANO 2022; 16:386-393. [PMID: 34962766 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.1c06922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The inverse Faraday effect allows the generation of stationary magnetic fields through optical excitation only. This light-matter interaction in metals results from creating drift currents via nonlinear forces that light applies to the conduction electrons. Here, we describe the theory underlying the generation of drift currents in metals, particularly its application to photonic nanostructures using numerical simulations. We demonstrate that a gold photonic nanoantenna, optimized by a genetic algorithm, allows, under high excitation power, to maximize the drift currents and generate a pulse of stationary magnetic fields in the tesla range. This intense magnetic field, confined at the nanoscale and for a few femtoseconds, results from annular optical confinement and not from the creation of a single optical hot spot. Moreover, by controlling the incident polarization state, we demonstrate the orientation control of the created magnetic field and its reversal on demand. Finally, the stationary magnetic field's temporal behavior and the drift currents associated with it reveal the subcycle nature of this light-matter interaction. The manipulation of drift currents by a plasmonic nanostructure for the generation of stationary magnetic field pulses finds applications in the ultrafast control of magnetic domains with applications not only in data storage technologies but also in research fields such as magnetic trapping, magnetic skyrmion, magnetic circular dichroism, to spin control, spin precession, spin currents, and spin-waves, among others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingyu Yang
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Ye Mou
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Bruno Gallas
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Agnès Maitre
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Laurent Coolen
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Mathieu Mivelle
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Institut des NanoSciences de Paris, INSP, F-75005 Paris, France
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22
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Yang S, Moon KW, Ju TS, Kim C, Kim HJ, Kim J, Tran BX, Hong JI, Hwang C. Electrical Generation and Deletion of Magnetic Skyrmion-Bubbles via Vertical Current Injection. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2021; 33:e2104406. [PMID: 34569658 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202104406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2021] [Revised: 08/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The magnetic skyrmion is a topologically protected spin texture that has attracted much attention as a promising information carrier because of its distinct features of suitability for high-density storage, low power consumption, and stability. One of the skyrmion devices proposed so far is the skyrmion racetrack memory, which is the skyrmion version of the domain-wall racetrack memory. For application in devices, skyrmion racetrack memory requires electrical generation, deletion, and displacement of isolated skyrmions. Despite the progress in experimental demonstrations of skyrmion generation, deletion, and displacement, these three operations have yet to be realized in one device. Here, a route for generating and deleting isolated skyrmion-bubbles through vertical current injection with an explanation of its microscopic origin is presented. By combining the proposed skyrmion-bubble generation/deletion method with the spin-orbit-torque-driven skyrmion shift, a proof-of-concept experimental demonstration of the skyrmion racetrack memory operation in a three-terminal device structure is provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seungmo Yang
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyoung-Woong Moon
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Tae-Seong Ju
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Changsoo Kim
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyun-Joong Kim
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Juran Kim
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Bao Xuan Tran
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu, 42988, Republic of Korea
| | - Jung-Il Hong
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu, 42988, Republic of Korea
| | - Chanyong Hwang
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
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23
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Moon KW, Yang S, Hwang C. Reversible magnetic spiral domain. Sci Rep 2021; 11:20970. [PMID: 34697314 PMCID: PMC8546083 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00016-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The various spiral structures that exist in nature inspire humanity because of their morphological beauty, and spiral structures are used in various fields, including architecture, engineering, and art. Spiral structures have their own winding directions, and in most spirals, it is difficult to reverse the predetermined winding direction. Here, we show that a rotating spiral exists in magnetic systems for which the winding direction can be easily reversed. A magnetization vector basically has a spiral motion combining a precessional and a damping motion. The application of these basic mechanics to a system composed of magnetic vectors that are affected by a radial current and the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction forms the rotating magnetic spiral. The winding direction of the magnetic spiral has its own stability, but the direction can be changed using an external magnetic field. This magnetic spiral has a finite size, and the magnetic domain is destroyed at the edge of the spiral, which can create magnetic skyrmions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyoung-Woong Moon
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Seungmo Yang
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Chanyong Hwang
- Quantum Spin Team, Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Daejeon, 34113, Republic of Korea.
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24
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Skyrmion Formation in Nanodisks Using Magnetic Force Microscopy Tip. NANOMATERIALS 2021; 11:nano11102627. [PMID: 34685062 PMCID: PMC8538463 DOI: 10.3390/nano11102627] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 09/13/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
We demonstrated numerically the skyrmion formation in ultrathin nanodisks using a magnetic force microscopy tip. We found that the local magnetic field generated by the magnetic tip significantly affects the magnetization state of the nanodisks and leads to the formation of skyrmions. Experimentally, we confirmed the influence of the local field on the magnetization states of the disks. Micromagnetic simulations explain the evolution of the magnetic state during magnetic force microscopy scanning and confirm the possibility of skyrmion formation. The formation of the horseshoe magnetic domain is a key transition from random labyrinth domain states into the skyrmion state. We showed that the formation of skyrmions by the magnetic probe is a reliable and repetitive procedure. Our findings provide a simple solution for skyrmion formation in nanodisks.
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25
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Deinhart V, Kern LM, Kirchhof JN, Juergensen S, Sturm J, Krauss E, Feichtner T, Kovalchuk S, Schneider M, Engel D, Pfau B, Hecht B, Bolotin KI, Reich S, Höflich K. The patterning toolbox FIB-o-mat: Exploiting the full potential of focused helium ions for nanofabrication. BEILSTEIN JOURNAL OF NANOTECHNOLOGY 2021; 12:304-318. [PMID: 33889477 PMCID: PMC8042487 DOI: 10.3762/bjnano.12.25] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/05/2021] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Focused beams of helium ions are a powerful tool for high-fidelity machining with spatial precision below 5 nm. Achieving such a high patterning precision over large areas and for different materials in a reproducible manner, however, is not trivial. Here, we introduce the Python toolbox FIB-o-mat for automated pattern creation and optimization, providing full flexibility to accomplish demanding patterning tasks. FIB-o-mat offers high-level pattern creation, enabling high-fidelity large-area patterning and systematic variations in geometry and raster settings. It also offers low-level beam path creation, providing full control over the beam movement and including sophisticated optimization tools. Three applications showcasing the potential of He ion beam nanofabrication for two-dimensional material systems and devices using FIB-o-mat are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Deinhart
- Ferdinand-Braun-Institut gGmbH, Leibniz-Institut für Höchstfrequenztechnik, Gustav-Kirchhoff-Str. 4, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Corelab Correlative Microscopy and Spectroscopy, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Lisa-Marie Kern
- Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, Max-Born-Straße 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Jan N Kirchhof
- Freie Universität Berlin, Arnimallee 14, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Joris Sturm
- Ferdinand-Braun-Institut gGmbH, Leibniz-Institut für Höchstfrequenztechnik, Gustav-Kirchhoff-Str. 4, 12489 Berlin, Germany
- Corelab Correlative Microscopy and Spectroscopy, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin, Germany
| | - Enno Krauss
- Department of Experimental Physics 5, Röntgen Research Center for Complex Material Research (RCCM), Physics Institute, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Thorsten Feichtner
- Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32 20133 Milano, Italy
| | | | - Michael Schneider
- Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, Max-Born-Straße 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dieter Engel
- Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, Max-Born-Straße 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Bastian Pfau
- Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, Max-Born-Straße 2A, 12489 Berlin, Germany
| | - Bert Hecht
- Department of Experimental Physics 5, Röntgen Research Center for Complex Material Research (RCCM), Physics Institute, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | | | - Stephanie Reich
- Freie Universität Berlin, Arnimallee 14, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Katja Höflich
- Corelab Correlative Microscopy and Spectroscopy, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin, Germany
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26
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Abstract
Skyrmion, a concept originally proposed in particle physics half a century ago, can now find the most fertile field for its applicability, that is, the magnetic skyrmion realized in helimagnetic materials. The spin swirling vortex-like texture of the magnetic skyrmion can define the particle nature by topology; that is, all the constituent spin moments within the two-dimensional sheet wrap the sphere just one time. Such a topological nature of the magnetic skyrmion can lead to extraordinary metastability via topological protection and the driven motion with low electric-current excitation, which may promise future application to spintronics. The skyrmions in the magnetic materials frequently show up as the crystal lattice form, e.g., hexagonal lattice, but sometimes as isolated or independent particles. These skyrmions in magnets were initially found in acentric magnets, such as chiral, polar, and bilayered magnets endowed with antisymmetric spin exchange interaction, while the skyrmion host materials have been explored in a broader family of compounds including centrosymmetric magnets. This review describes the materials science and materials chemistry of magnetic skyrmions using the classification scheme of the skyrmion forming microscopic mechanisms. The emergent phenomena and functions mediated by skyrmions are described, including the generation of emergent magnetic and electric field by statics and dynamics of skrymions and the inherent magnetoelectric effect. The other important magnetic topological defects in two or three dimensions, such as biskyrmions, antiskyrmions, merons, and hedgehogs, are also reviewed in light of their interplay with the skyrmions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshinori Tokura
- Department of Applied Physics, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan.,RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science (CEMS), Wako, 351-0198, Japan.,Tokyo College, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
| | - Naoya Kanazawa
- Department of Applied Physics, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
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27
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Chen S, Yuan S, Hou Z, Tang Y, Zhang J, Wang T, Li K, Zhao W, Liu X, Chen L, Martin LW, Chen Z. Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2021; 33:e2000857. [PMID: 32815214 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202000857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2020] [Revised: 04/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Topological spin/polarization structures in ferroic materials continue to draw great attention as a result of their fascinating physical behaviors and promising applications in the field of high-density nonvolatile memories as well as future energy-efficient nanoelectronic and spintronic devices. Such developments have been made, in part, based on recent advances in theoretical calculations, the synthesis of high-quality thin films, and the characterization of their emergent phenomena and exotic phases. Herein, progress over the last decade in the study of topological structures in ferroic thin films and heterostructures is explored, including the observation of topological structures and control of their structures and emergent physical phenomena through epitaxial strain, layer thickness, electric, magnetic fields, etc. First, the evolution of topological spin structures (e.g., magnetic skyrmions) and associated functionalities (e.g., topological Hall effect) in magnetic thin films and heterostructures is discussed. Then, the exotic polar topologies (e.g., domain walls, closure domains, polar vortices, bubble domains, and polar skyrmions) and their emergent physical properties in ferroelectric oxide films and heterostructures are explored. Finally, a brief overview and prospectus of how the field may evolve in the coming years is provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shanquan Chen
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Shuai Yuan
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Zhipeng Hou
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology & Institute for Advanced Materials, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, P. R. China
- National Center for International Research on Green Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, P. R. China
| | - Yunlong Tang
- Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wenhua Road 72, Shenyang, 110016, China
| | - Jinping Zhang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Tao Wang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Kang Li
- Flexible Printed Electronics Technology Center, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Weiwei Zhao
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- Flexible Printed Electronics Technology Center, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Xingjun Liu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Lang Chen
- Department of Physics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Lane W Martin
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
- Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Zuhuang Chen
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- Flexible Printed Electronics Technology Center, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China
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28
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Büttner F, Pfau B, Böttcher M, Schneider M, Mercurio G, Günther CM, Hessing P, Klose C, Wittmann A, Gerlinger K, Kern LM, Strüber C, von Korff Schmising C, Fuchs J, Engel D, Churikova A, Huang S, Suzuki D, Lemesh I, Huang M, Caretta L, Weder D, Gaida JH, Möller M, Harvey TR, Zayko S, Bagschik K, Carley R, Mercadier L, Schlappa J, Yaroslavtsev A, Le Guyarder L, Gerasimova N, Scherz A, Deiter C, Gort R, Hickin D, Zhu J, Turcato M, Lomidze D, Erdinger F, Castoldi A, Maffessanti S, Porro M, Samartsev A, Sinova J, Ropers C, Mentink JH, Dupé B, Beach GSD, Eisebitt S. Observation of fluctuation-mediated picosecond nucleation of a topological phase. NATURE MATERIALS 2021; 20:30-37. [PMID: 33020615 DOI: 10.1038/s41563-020-00807-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Topological states of matter exhibit fascinating physics combined with an intrinsic stability. A key challenge is the fast creation of topological phases, which requires massive reorientation of charge or spin degrees of freedom. Here we report the picosecond emergence of an extended topological phase that comprises many magnetic skyrmions. The nucleation of this phase, followed in real time via single-shot soft X-ray scattering after infrared laser excitation, is mediated by a transient topological fluctuation state. This state is enabled by the presence of a time-reversal symmetry-breaking perpendicular magnetic field and exists for less than 300 ps. Atomistic simulations indicate that the fluctuation state largely reduces the topological energy barrier and thereby enables the observed rapid and homogeneous nucleation of the skyrmion phase. These observations provide fundamental insights into the nature of topological phase transitions, and suggest a path towards ultrafast topological switching in a wide variety of materials through intermediate fluctuating states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Büttner
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie GmbH, Berlin, Germany.
| | | | - Marie Böttcher
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | | | | | - Christian M Günther
- Zentraleinrichtung Elektronenmikroskopie (ZELMI), Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | | | - Angela Wittmann
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Alexandra Churikova
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Siying Huang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Daniel Suzuki
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Ivan Lemesh
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Mantao Huang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Lucas Caretta
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - John H Gaida
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marcel Möller
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Tyler R Harvey
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sergey Zayko
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Kai Bagschik
- Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Jun Zhu
- European XFEL, Schenefeld, Germany
| | | | | | - Florian Erdinger
- Institute of Computer Engineering, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Andrea Castoldi
- Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Milano, Milano, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Jairo Sinova
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Claus Ropers
- 4th Physical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Johan H Mentink
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Bertrand Dupé
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Mainz, Germany
- Nanomat/Q-mat/CESAM, Université de Liège, Belgium and Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS), Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Geoffrey S D Beach
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Stefan Eisebitt
- Max-Born-Institut, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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29
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Ognev AV, Kolesnikov AG, Kim YJ, Cha IH, Sadovnikov AV, Nikitov SA, Soldatov IV, Talapatra A, Mohanty J, Mruczkiewicz M, Ge Y, Kerber N, Dittrich F, Virnau P, Kläui M, Kim YK, Samardak AS. Magnetic Direct-Write Skyrmion Nanolithography. ACS NANO 2020; 14:14960-14970. [PMID: 33152236 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.0c04748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions are stable spin textures with quasi-particle behavior and attract significant interest in fundamental and applied physics. The metastability of magnetic skyrmions at zero magnetic field is particularly important to enable, for instance, a skyrmion racetrack memory. Here, the results of the nucleation of stable skyrmions and formation of ordered skyrmion lattices by magnetic force microscopy in (Pt/CoFeSiB/W)n multilayers, exploiting the additive effect of the interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, are presented. The appropriate conditions under which skyrmion lattices are confined with a dense two-dimensional liquid phase are identified. A crucial parameter to control the skyrmion lattice characteristics and the number of scans resulting in the complete formation of a skyrmion lattice is the distance between two adjacent scanning lines of a magnetic force microscopy probe. The creation of skyrmion patterns with complex geometry is demonstrated, and the physical mechanism of direct magnetic writing of skyrmions is comprehended by micromagnetic simulations. This study shows a potential of a direct-write (maskless) skyrmion (topological) nanolithography with sub-100 nm resolution, where each skyrmion acts as a pixel in the final topological image.
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Affiliation(s)
- A V Ognev
- School of Natural Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok 690950, Russia
| | - A G Kolesnikov
- School of Natural Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok 690950, Russia
| | - Yong Jin Kim
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea
| | - In Ho Cha
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea
| | - A V Sadovnikov
- Laboratory "Metamaterials", Saratov State University, Saratov 410012, Russia
- Kotel'nikov Institute of Radioengineering and Electronics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 125009, Russia
| | - S A Nikitov
- Laboratory "Metamaterials", Saratov State University, Saratov 410012, Russia
- Kotel'nikov Institute of Radioengineering and Electronics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 125009, Russia
| | - I V Soldatov
- Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Material Research (IFW-Dresden), Dresden 01069, Germany
- Institute of Natural Sciences and Mathematic, Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg 620075, Russia
| | - A Talapatra
- Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad 502285, India
| | - J Mohanty
- Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad 502285, India
| | - M Mruczkiewicz
- Institute of Electrical Engineering, SAS, Bratislava 841 04, Slovakia
- Centre for Advanced Materials Application (CEMEA), Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava 845 11, Slovakia
| | - Y Ge
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz 55128, Germany
| | - N Kerber
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz 55128, Germany
| | - F Dittrich
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz 55128, Germany
| | - P Virnau
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz 55128, Germany
| | - M Kläui
- Institut für Physik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Mainz 55128, Germany
| | - Young Keun Kim
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea
| | - A S Samardak
- School of Natural Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok 690950, Russia
- National Research South Ural State University, Chelyabinsk 454080, Russia
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30
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Guang Y, Peng Y, Yan Z, Liu Y, Zhang J, Zeng X, Zhang S, Zhang S, Burn DM, Jaouen N, Wei J, Xu H, Feng J, Fang C, van der Laan G, Hesjedal T, Cui B, Zhang X, Yu G, Han X. Electron Beam Lithography of Magnetic Skyrmions. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2020; 32:e2003003. [PMID: 32812294 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202003003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2020] [Revised: 06/27/2020] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The emergence of magnetic skyrmions, topological spin textures, has aroused tremendous interest in studying the rich physics related to their topology. While skyrmions promise high-density and energy-efficient magnetic memory devices for information technology, the manifestation of their nontrivial topology through single skyrmions and ordered and disordered skyrmion lattices could also give rise to many fascinating physical phenomena, such as chiral magnon and skyrmion glass states. Therefore, generating skyrmions at designated locations on a large scale, while controlling the skyrmion patterns, is the key to advancing topological magnetism. Here, a new, yet general, approach to the "printing" of skyrmions with zero-field stability in arbitrary patterns on a massive scale in exchange-biased magnetic multilayers is presented. By exploiting the fact that the antiferromagnetic order can be reconfigured by local thermal excitations, a focused electron beam with a graphic pattern generator to "print" skyrmions is used, which is referred to as skyrmion lithography. This work provides a route to design arbitrary skyrmion patterns, thereby establishing the foundation for further exploration of topological magnetism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Guang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yong Peng
- Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Zhengren Yan
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yizhou Liu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Junwei Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
- Physical Science and Engineering Division (PSE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Xue Zeng
- School of Mathematics and Physics, Lanzhou Jiaotong University, Lanzhou, 730070, China
| | - Senfu Zhang
- Physical Science and Engineering Division (PSE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Shilei Zhang
- ShanghaiTech Laboratory for Topological Physics, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China
- School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China
| | - David M Burn
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Nicolas Jaouen
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, Saint-Aubin, Gif-sur-Yvette, 91192, France
| | - Jinwu Wei
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Hongjun Xu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Jiafeng Feng
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Chi Fang
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Gerrit van der Laan
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Thorsten Hesjedal
- Department of Physics, Clarendon Laboratory, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PU, UK
| | - Baoshan Cui
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Xixiang Zhang
- Physical Science and Engineering Division (PSE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia
| | - Guoqiang Yu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
| | - Xiufeng Han
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
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31
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Chai K, Li ZA, Liu R, Zou B, Farle M, Li J. Dynamics of chiral state transitions and relaxations in an FeGe thin plate via in situ Lorentz microscopy. NANOSCALE 2020; 12:14919-14925. [PMID: 32638795 DOI: 10.1039/d0nr03278f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Studying the magnetic transition between different topological spin textures in noncentrosymmetric magnets under external stimuli is an important topic in chiral magnetism. Here, using in situ Lorentz transmission electron microscopy (LTEM) we directly visualize the thermal-driven magnetic transitions and dynamic characteristics in FeGe thin plates. A novel protocol-dependent phase diagram of FeGe thin plates was obtained via pulsed laser excitation. Moreover, by setting the appropriate specimen temperature, the relaxation of chiral magnetic states in FeGe specimens was recorded and analyzed with an Arrhenius-type relaxation mechanism. We present the field-dependent activation energy barriers for chiral state transitions and the magnetic transition pathways of these spin textures for FeGe thin plates. Our results unveil the effects of thermal excitation on the topological spin texture transitions and provide useful information about magnetic dynamics of chiral magnetic state relaxation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Chai
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems, School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China. and Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Zi-An Li
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Ruibin Liu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems, School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China.
| | - Bingsuo Zou
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems, School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China. and Center on Nano-energy Research, School of Physical Science and Technology, Guangxi University, Nanning, 530004, China
| | - Michael Farle
- Faculty of Physics and Center for Nanointegration (CENIDE), University of Duisburg-Essen, 47057 Duisburg, Germany
| | - Jianqi Li
- Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics and Institute of Physics Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China and Yangtze River Delta Physics Research Center Co., Ltd. - Liyang, Jiangsu, 213300, China and Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory - Dongguan, Guangdong, 523808, China
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32
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Zhang X, Zhou Y, Mee Song K, Park TE, Xia J, Ezawa M, Liu X, Zhao W, Zhao G, Woo S. Skyrmion-electronics: writing, deleting, reading and processing magnetic skyrmions toward spintronic applications. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2020; 32:143001. [PMID: 31689688 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ab5488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The field of magnetic skyrmions has been actively investigated across a wide range of topics during the last decades. In this topical review, we mainly review and discuss key results and findings in skyrmion research since the first experimental observation of magnetic skyrmions in 2009. We particularly focus on the theoretical, computational and experimental findings and advances that are directly relevant to the spintronic applications based on magnetic skyrmions, i.e. their writing, deleting, reading and processing driven by magnetic field, electric current and thermal energy. We then review several potential applications including information storage, logic computing gates and non-conventional devices such as neuromorphic computing devices. Finally, we discuss possible future research directions on magnetic skyrmions, which also cover rich topics on other topological textures such as antiskyrmions and bimerons in antiferromagnets and frustrated magnets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xichao Zhang
- School of Science and Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518172, People's Republic of China
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33
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Fallon K, Hughes S, Zeissler K, Legrand W, Ajejas F, Maccariello D, McFadzean S, Smith W, McGrouther D, Collin S, Reyren N, Cros V, Marrows CH, McVitie S. Controlled Individual Skyrmion Nucleation at Artificial Defects Formed by Ion Irradiation. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2020; 16:e1907450. [PMID: 32141234 DOI: 10.1002/smll.201907450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2019] [Revised: 02/14/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions are particle-like deformations in a magnetic texture. They have great potential as information carriers in spintronic devices because of their interesting topological properties and favorable motion under spin currents. A new method of nucleating skyrmions at nanoscale defect sites, created in a controlled manner with focused ion beam irradiation, in polycrystalline magnetic multilayer samples with an interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, is reported. This new method has three notable advantages: 1) localization of nucleation; 2) stability over a larger range of external field strengths, including stability at zero field; and 3) existence of skyrmions in material systems where, prior to defect fabrication, skyrmions were not previously obtained by field cycling. Additionally, it is observed that the size of defect nucleated skyrmions is uninfluenced by the defect itself-provided that the artificial defects are controlled to be smaller than the inherent skyrmion size. All of these characteristics are expected to be useful toward the goal of realizing a skyrmion-based spintronic device. This phenomenon is studied with a range of transmission electron microscopy techniques to probe quantitatively the magnetic behavior at the defects with applied field and correlate this with the structural impact of the defects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayla Fallon
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Sean Hughes
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Katharina Zeissler
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
- Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales, Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau, 91767, France
| | - William Legrand
- National Physical Laboratory, Hampton Road, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK
| | - Fernando Ajejas
- National Physical Laboratory, Hampton Road, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK
| | | | - Samuel McFadzean
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - William Smith
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Damien McGrouther
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Sophie Collin
- National Physical Laboratory, Hampton Road, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK
| | - Nicolas Reyren
- National Physical Laboratory, Hampton Road, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK
| | - Vincent Cros
- National Physical Laboratory, Hampton Road, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK
| | | | - Stephen McVitie
- SUPA School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
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34
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Je SG, Han HS, Kim SK, Montoya SA, Chao W, Hong IS, Fullerton EE, Lee KS, Lee KJ, Im MY, Hong JI. Direct Demonstration of Topological Stability of Magnetic Skyrmions via Topology Manipulation. ACS NANO 2020; 14:3251-3258. [PMID: 32129978 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.9b08699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Topological protection precludes a continuous deformation between topologically inequivalent configurations in a continuum. Motivated by this concept, magnetic skyrmions, topologically nontrivial spin textures, are expected to exhibit topological stability, thereby offering a prospect as a nanometer-scale nonvolatile information carrier. In real materials, however, atomic spins are configured as not continuous but discrete distributions, which raises a fundamental question if the topological stability is indeed preserved for real magnetic skyrmions. Answering this question necessitates a direct comparison between topologically nontrivial and trivial spin textures, but the direct comparison in one sample under the same magnetic fields has been challenging. Here we report how to selectively achieve either a skyrmion state or a topologically trivial bubble state in a single specimen and thereby experimentally show how robust the skyrmion structure is in comparison with the bubbles. We demonstrate that topologically nontrivial magnetic skyrmions show longer lifetimes than trivial bubble structures, evidencing the topological stability in a real discrete system. Our work corroborates the physical importance of the topology in the magnetic materials, which has hitherto been suggested by mathematical arguments, providing an important step toward ever-dense and more-stable magnetic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soong-Geun Je
- Center for X-ray Optics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu 42988, Korea
- Center for Spin-Orbitronic Materials, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
- Department of Physics, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 61186, Korea
| | - Hee-Sung Han
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea
| | - Se Kwon Kim
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, United States
| | - Sergio A Montoya
- Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, San Diego, California 92152, United States
| | - Weilun Chao
- Center for X-ray Optics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Ik-Sun Hong
- KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
| | - Eric E Fullerton
- Center for Memory and Recording Research, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States
| | - Ki-Suk Lee
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea
| | - Kyung-Jin Lee
- KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
| | - Mi-Young Im
- Center for X-ray Optics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu 42988, Korea
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea
| | - Jung-Il Hong
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu 42988, Korea
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Creating zero-field skyrmions in exchange-biased multilayers through X-ray illumination. Nat Commun 2020; 11:949. [PMID: 32075968 PMCID: PMC7031520 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14769-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2018] [Accepted: 01/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Skyrmions, magnetic textures with topological stability, hold promises for high-density and energy-efficient information storage devices owing to their small size and low driving-current density. Precise creation of a single nanoscale skyrmion is a prerequisite to further understand the skyrmion physics and tailor skyrmion-based applications. Here, we demonstrate the creation of individual skyrmions at zero-field in an exchange-biased magnetic multilayer with exposure to soft X-rays. In particular, a single skyrmion with 100-nm size can be created at the desired position using a focused X-ray spot of sub-50-nm size. This single skyrmion creation is driven by the X-ray-induced modification of the antiferromagnetic order and the corresponding exchange bias. Furthermore, artificial skyrmion lattices with various arrangements can be patterned using X-ray. These results demonstrate the potential of accurate optical control of single skyrmion at sub-100 nm scale. We envision that X-ray could serve as a versatile tool for local manipulation of magnetic orders. Skyrmions are objects with whirled magnetization protected by their topology that can be created by different means, however, without control of their position. Here, the authors present a method exploiting x-rays to create skyrmions at the beam position allowing for creation of artificial skyrmion lattices.
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Abendroth JM, Stemer DM, Bloom BP, Roy P, Naaman R, Waldeck DH, Weiss PS, Mondal PC. Spin Selectivity in Photoinduced Charge-Transfer Mediated by Chiral Molecules. ACS NANO 2019; 13:4928-4946. [PMID: 31016968 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.9b01876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Optical control and readout of electron spin and spin currents in thin films and nanostructures have remained attractive yet challenging goals for emerging technologies designed for applications in information processing and storage. Recent advances in room-temperature spin polarization using nanometric chiral molecular assemblies suggest that chemically modified surfaces or interfaces can be used for optical spin conversion by exploiting photoinduced charge separation and injection from well-coupled organic chromophores or quantum dots. Using light to drive photoexcited charge-transfer processes mediated by molecules with central or helical chirality enables indirect measurements of spin polarization attributed to the chiral-induced spin selectivity effect and of the efficiency of spin-dependent electron transfer relative to competitive relaxation pathways. Herein, we highlight recent approaches used to detect and to analyze spin selectivity in photoinduced charge transfer including spin-transfer torque for local magnetization, nanoscale charge separation and polarization, and soft ferromagnetic substrate magnetization- and chirality-dependent photoluminescence. Building on these methods through systematic investigation of molecular and environmental parameters that influence spin filtering should elucidate means to manipulate electron spins and photoexcited states for room-temperature optoelectronic and photospintronic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- John M Abendroth
- California NanoSystems Institute , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
| | - Dominik M Stemer
- California NanoSystems Institute , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
| | - Brian P Bloom
- Department of Chemistry , University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania 15260 , United States
| | - Partha Roy
- Department of Chemistry , Central University of Rajasthan , Kishangarh 305817 Ajmer , India
| | - Ron Naaman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Physics , Weizmann Institute of Science , Rehovot 76100 , Israel
| | - David H Waldeck
- Department of Chemistry , University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania 15260 , United States
| | - Paul S Weiss
- California NanoSystems Institute , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering , University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , California 90095 , United States
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37
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Iacocca E, Liu TM, Reid AH, Fu Z, Ruta S, Granitzka PW, Jal E, Bonetti S, Gray AX, Graves CE, Kukreja R, Chen Z, Higley DJ, Chase T, Le Guyader L, Hirsch K, Ohldag H, Schlotter WF, Dakovski GL, Coslovich G, Hoffmann MC, Carron S, Tsukamoto A, Kirilyuk A, Kimel AV, Rasing T, Stöhr J, Evans RFL, Ostler T, Chantrell RW, Hoefer MA, Silva TJ, Dürr HA. Spin-current-mediated rapid magnon localisation and coalescence after ultrafast optical pumping of ferrimagnetic alloys. Nat Commun 2019; 10:1756. [PMID: 30988403 PMCID: PMC6465265 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09577-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 03/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Sub-picosecond magnetisation manipulation via femtosecond optical pumping has attracted wide attention ever since its original discovery in 1996. However, the spatial evolution of the magnetisation is not yet well understood, in part due to the difficulty in experimentally probing such rapid dynamics. Here, we find evidence of a universal rapid magnetic order recovery in ferrimagnets with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy via nonlinear magnon processes. We identify magnon localisation and coalescence processes, whereby localised magnetic textures nucleate and subsequently interact and grow in accordance with a power law formalism. A hydrodynamic representation of the numerical simulations indicates that the appearance of noncollinear magnetisation via optical pumping establishes exchange-mediated spin currents with an equivalent 100% spin polarised charge current density of 107 A cm-2. Such large spin currents precipitate rapid recovery of magnetic order after optical pumping. The magnon processes discussed here provide new insights for the stabilization of desired meta-stable states.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Iacocca
- Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80305, USA
- Department of Physics, Division for Theoretical Physics, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, 412 96, Sweden
| | - T-M Liu
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - A H Reid
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - Z Fu
- School of Physics, Science, and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - S Ruta
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - P W Granitzka
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - E Jal
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - S Bonetti
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Department of Physics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, 106 91, Sweden
- Department of Molecular Science and Nanosystems, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Venezia-Mestre, 30172, Italy
| | - A X Gray
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Department of Physics, Temple University, 1925 N. 12th St., Philadelphia, PA, 19122, USA
| | - C E Graves
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - R Kukreja
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - Z Chen
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - D J Higley
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - T Chase
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - L Le Guyader
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
- Spectroscopy & Coherent Scattering, European X-Ray Free-Electron Laser Facility GmbH, Holzkoppel 4, 22869, Schenefeld, Germany
| | - K Hirsch
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - H Ohldag
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - W F Schlotter
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - G L Dakovski
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - G Coslovich
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - M C Hoffmann
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - S Carron
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - A Tsukamoto
- Department of Electronics and Computer Science, Nihon University, 7-24-1 Narashino-dai Funabashi, Chiba, 274-8501, Japan
| | - A Kirilyuk
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - A V Kimel
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Th Rasing
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - J Stöhr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA
| | - R F L Evans
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - T Ostler
- Physique des Matériaux et Nanostructures, Université de Liège, Liège, B-4000, Sart Tilman, Belgium
- Faculty of Arts, Computing, Engineering and Sciences, Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK
| | - R W Chantrell
- Department of Physics, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
- Institute for Molecules and Materials, Radboud University, Heyendaalseweg 135, 6525 AJ, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - M A Hoefer
- Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - T J Silva
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO, 80305, USA
| | - H A Dürr
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, Box 516, 751 20, Uppsala, Sweden.
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