Electric-field-driven Non-volatile Multi-state Switching of Individual Skyrmions in a Multiferroic Heterostructure

Yadong Wang; Lei Wang; Jing Xia; Zhengxun Lai; Guo Tian; Xichao Zhang; Zhipeng Hou; Xingsen Gao; Wenbo Mi; Chun Feng; Min Zeng; Guofu Zhou; Guanghua Yu; Guangheng Wu; Yan Zhou; Wenhong Wang; Xixiang Zhang; Junming Liu

doi:10.1038/s41467-020-17354-7

Electric-field-driven Non-volatile Multi-state Switching of Individual Skyrmions in a Multiferroic Heterostructure

Yadong Wang, Lei Wang, Jing Xia, Zhengxun Lai, Guo Tian, Xichao Zhang, Zhipeng Hou, Xingsen Gao, Wenbo Mi, Chun Feng, Min Zeng, Guofu Zhou, Guanghua Yu, Guangheng Wu, Yan Zhou, Wenhong Wang, Xixiang Zhang, Junming Liu

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

70 Scopus citations

Abstract

Electrical manipulation of skyrmions attracts considerable attention for its rich physics and promising applications. To date, such a manipulation is realized mainly via spin-polarized current based on spin-transfer torque or spin–orbital torque effect. However, this scheme is energy consuming and may produce massive Joule heating. To reduce energy dissipation and risk of heightened temperatures of skyrmion-based devices, an effective solution is to use electric field instead of current as stimulus. Here, we realize an electric-field manipulation of skyrmions in a nanostructured ferromagnetic/ferroelectrical heterostructure at room temperature via an inverse magneto-mechanical effect. Intriguingly, such a manipulation is non-volatile and exhibits a multistate feature. Numerical simulations indicate that the electric-field manipulation of skyrmions originates from strain-mediated modification of effective magnetic anisotropy and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction. Our results open a direction for constructing low-energy-dissipation, non-volatile, and multistate skyrmion-based spintronic devices.

Original language	English (US)
Journal	Nature Communications
Volume	11
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17354-7
State	Published - Jul 17 2020

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-02-21
Acknowledgements: The authors thank for the financial supports from the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Nos. 2016YFA0201002 and 2016YFA0300101), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 11674108, 51272078, 11574091, 51671023, 51871017, 11974298, and 61961136006), Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province (No. 2015B090927006), the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (No. 2016A030308019), Open Research Fund of Key Laboratory of Polar Materials and Devices, Ministry of Education, National Natural Science Foundation of China Youth Fund (Grant No. 51901081), Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou (No. 2019050001), President’s Fund of CUHKSZ, Longgang Key Laboratory of Applied Spintronics and Shenzhen Peacock Group Plan (Grant No. KQTD20180413181702403), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (Grant No. 2019A1515110713).

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title = "Electric-field-driven Non-volatile Multi-state Switching of Individual Skyrmions in a Multiferroic Heterostructure",

abstract = "Electrical manipulation of skyrmions attracts considerable attention for its rich physics and promising applications. To date, such a manipulation is realized mainly via spin-polarized current based on spin-transfer torque or spin–orbital torque effect. However, this scheme is energy consuming and may produce massive Joule heating. To reduce energy dissipation and risk of heightened temperatures of skyrmion-based devices, an effective solution is to use electric field instead of current as stimulus. Here, we realize an electric-field manipulation of skyrmions in a nanostructured ferromagnetic/ferroelectrical heterostructure at room temperature via an inverse magneto-mechanical effect. Intriguingly, such a manipulation is non-volatile and exhibits a multistate feature. Numerical simulations indicate that the electric-field manipulation of skyrmions originates from strain-mediated modification of effective magnetic anisotropy and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction. Our results open a direction for constructing low-energy-dissipation, non-volatile, and multistate skyrmion-based spintronic devices.",

author = "Yadong Wang and Lei Wang and Jing Xia and Zhengxun Lai and Guo Tian and Xichao Zhang and Zhipeng Hou and Xingsen Gao and Wenbo Mi and Chun Feng and Min Zeng and Guofu Zhou and Guanghua Yu and Guangheng Wu and Yan Zhou and Wenhong Wang and Xixiang Zhang and Junming Liu",

note = "KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-02-21 Acknowledgements: The authors thank for the financial supports from the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Nos. 2016YFA0201002 and 2016YFA0300101), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 11674108, 51272078, 11574091, 51671023, 51871017, 11974298, and 61961136006), Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province (No. 2015B090927006), the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (No. 2016A030308019), Open Research Fund of Key Laboratory of Polar Materials and Devices, Ministry of Education, National Natural Science Foundation of China Youth Fund (Grant No. 51901081), Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou (No. 2019050001), President{\textquoteright}s Fund of CUHKSZ, Longgang Key Laboratory of Applied Spintronics and Shenzhen Peacock Group Plan (Grant No. KQTD20180413181702403), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (Grant No. 2019A1515110713).",

year = "2020",

month = jul,

day = "17",

doi = "10.1038/s41467-020-17354-7",

language = "English (US)",

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T1 - Electric-field-driven Non-volatile Multi-state Switching of Individual Skyrmions in a Multiferroic Heterostructure

AU - Wang, Yadong

AU - Wang, Lei

AU - Xia, Jing

AU - Lai, Zhengxun

AU - Tian, Guo

AU - Zhang, Xichao

AU - Hou, Zhipeng

AU - Gao, Xingsen

AU - Mi, Wenbo

AU - Feng, Chun

AU - Zeng, Min

AU - Zhou, Guofu

AU - Yu, Guanghua

AU - Wu, Guangheng

AU - Zhou, Yan

AU - Wang, Wenhong

AU - Zhang, Xixiang

AU - Liu, Junming

N1 - KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2021-02-21 Acknowledgements: The authors thank for the financial supports from the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Nos. 2016YFA0201002 and 2016YFA0300101), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 11674108, 51272078, 11574091, 51671023, 51871017, 11974298, and 61961136006), Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province (No. 2015B090927006), the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (No. 2016A030308019), Open Research Fund of Key Laboratory of Polar Materials and Devices, Ministry of Education, National Natural Science Foundation of China Youth Fund (Grant No. 51901081), Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou (No. 2019050001), President’s Fund of CUHKSZ, Longgang Key Laboratory of Applied Spintronics and Shenzhen Peacock Group Plan (Grant No. KQTD20180413181702403), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (Grant No. 2019A1515110713).

PY - 2020/7/17

Y1 - 2020/7/17

N2 - Electrical manipulation of skyrmions attracts considerable attention for its rich physics and promising applications. To date, such a manipulation is realized mainly via spin-polarized current based on spin-transfer torque or spin–orbital torque effect. However, this scheme is energy consuming and may produce massive Joule heating. To reduce energy dissipation and risk of heightened temperatures of skyrmion-based devices, an effective solution is to use electric field instead of current as stimulus. Here, we realize an electric-field manipulation of skyrmions in a nanostructured ferromagnetic/ferroelectrical heterostructure at room temperature via an inverse magneto-mechanical effect. Intriguingly, such a manipulation is non-volatile and exhibits a multistate feature. Numerical simulations indicate that the electric-field manipulation of skyrmions originates from strain-mediated modification of effective magnetic anisotropy and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction. Our results open a direction for constructing low-energy-dissipation, non-volatile, and multistate skyrmion-based spintronic devices.

AB - Electrical manipulation of skyrmions attracts considerable attention for its rich physics and promising applications. To date, such a manipulation is realized mainly via spin-polarized current based on spin-transfer torque or spin–orbital torque effect. However, this scheme is energy consuming and may produce massive Joule heating. To reduce energy dissipation and risk of heightened temperatures of skyrmion-based devices, an effective solution is to use electric field instead of current as stimulus. Here, we realize an electric-field manipulation of skyrmions in a nanostructured ferromagnetic/ferroelectrical heterostructure at room temperature via an inverse magneto-mechanical effect. Intriguingly, such a manipulation is non-volatile and exhibits a multistate feature. Numerical simulations indicate that the electric-field manipulation of skyrmions originates from strain-mediated modification of effective magnetic anisotropy and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction. Our results open a direction for constructing low-energy-dissipation, non-volatile, and multistate skyrmion-based spintronic devices.

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U2 - 10.1038/s41467-020-17354-7

DO - 10.1038/s41467-020-17354-7

M3 - Article

C2 - 32681004

SN - 2041-1723

VL - 11

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

IS - 1

ER -

Electric-field-driven Non-volatile Multi-state Switching of Individual Skyrmions in a Multiferroic Heterostructure

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