Abstract

Merons which are topologically equivalent to one-half of skyrmions can exist only in pairs or groups in two-dimensional (2D) ferromagnetic (FM) systems. The recent discovery of meron lattice in chiral magnet Co8Zn9Mn3 raises the immediate challenging question that whether a single meron pair, which is the most fundamental topological structure in any 2D meron systems, can be created and stabilized in a continuous FM film? Utilizing winding number conservation, we develop a new method to create and stabilize a single pair of merons in a continuous Py film by local vortex imprinting from a Co disk. By observing the created meron pair directly within a magnetic field, we determine its topological structure unambiguously and explore the topological effect in its creation and annihilation processes. Our work opens a pathway towards developing and controlling topological structures in general magnetic systems without the restriction of perpendicular anisotropy and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction.

Details

Title
Creation and annihilation of topological meron pairs in in-plane magnetized films
Author
Gao, N 1 ; S -G Je 2 ; M -Y Im 3 ; Choi, J W 4 ; Yang, M 5 ; Q Li 5 ; Wang, T Y 5 ; Lee, S 6 ; H -S Han 6 ; K -S Lee 6   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Chao, W 2 ; Hwang, C 7 ; J Li 8 ; Qiu, Z Q 5   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

1  Key Laboratory of Microelectronic Devices and Integrated Technology, Institute of Microelectronics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Department of Physics, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA 
2  Center for X-ray Optics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA 
3  Center for X-ray Optics, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA; Department of Emerging Materials Science, DGIST, Daegu, Korea 
4  Center for Spintronics, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul, Korea 
5  Department of Physics, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA 
6  School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan, Korea 
7  Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, Yuseong, Daejeon, Korea 
8  International Center for Quantum Materials, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, China 
Pages
1-9
Publication year
2019
Publication date
Dec 2019
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20411723
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-13642-z
ProQuest document ID
2322188064
Copyright
© 2019. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.