Dresden 2014 – scientific programme

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MA: Fachverband Magnetismus

MA 45: Spin Structures at Surfaces and in thin films I (Skyrmions)

MA 45.2: Talk

Thursday, April 3, 2014, 15:15–15:30, BEY 118

Tailoring magnetic skyrmions in ultra-thin transition-metal films — •Bertrand Dupé, Markus Hoffmann, Charles Paillard, and Stefan Heinze — Institue of Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany

Skyrmions in magnetic materials offer attractive perspectives for future spintronic applications [1] since they are topologically stabilized spin structures on the nanometer scale which can be manipulated at low electric current densities [2,3]. Recently, it has been discovered that due to the broken inversion symmetry at surfaces magnetic skyrmion lattices can occur in ultra-thin transition metal films [4,5]. Here, we present an understanding of skyrmions in such systems based on first-principles electronic structure theory. We determine the magnetic interactions for ultra-thin films composed of Pd and Fe on the Ir(111) surface using density functional theory and explain the occurrence of skyrmion phases in an external magnetic field using Monte-Carlo simulations. Our simulations not only confirm the succession of phases recently reported in experiments [5] but also demonstrate the possibility of tailoring skyrmion properties at transition-metal interfaces [6].

[1] J. Sampaio, et al Nature Nanotech. 8, 839 (2013). [2] F. Jonietz, et al Science 330, 1648 (2010). [3] X. Z. Yu, N. Kanazawa, et al Nature Comm. 3, 988 (2012). [4] S. Heinze, et al Nature Phys. 7, 713 (2011). [5] N. Romming, et al Science 341, 636 (2013). [6] B. Dupé, et al submitted.