Abstract
We report the creation and real-space observation of magnetic structures with well-defined topological properties and a lateral size as low as about 150 nm. They are generated in a thin ferrimagnetic film by ultrashort single optical laser pulses. Thanks to their topological properties, such structures can be classified as Skyrmions of a particular type that does not require an externally applied magnetic field for stabilization. Besides Skyrmions, we are able to generate magnetic features with topological characteristics that can be tuned by changing the laser fluence. The stability of such features is accounted for by an analytical model based on the interplay between the exchange and the magnetic dipole-dipole interactions.
- Received 19 October 2012
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.177205
© 2013 American Physical Society
Synopsis
SynopsisLaser-Made Magnetic Vortices
Published 22 April 2013
Experiments demonstrate the possibility of engineering stable, nanometer-scale magnetic structures in thin magnetic films by firing laser pulses at them.
See more in Physics
