This title appears in the Scientific Report :
2023
Please use the identifier:
http://dx.doi.org/10.34734/FZJ-2023-04806 in citations.
Please use the identifier: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06658-5 in citations.
Hopfion rings in a cubic chiral magnet
Hopfion rings in a cubic chiral magnet
Magnetic skyrmions and hopfions are topological solitons1—well-localized field configurations that have gained considerable attention over the past decade owing to their unique particle-like properties, which make them promising objects for spintronic applications. Skyrmions2,3 are two-dimensional s...
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Personal Name(s): | Zheng, Fengshan (Corresponding author) |
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Kiselev, Nikolai S. (Corresponding author) / Rybakov, Filipp N. (Corresponding author) / Yang, Luyan / Shi, Wen / Blügel, Stefan / Dunin-Borkowski, Rafal E. | |
Contributing Institute: |
Quanten-Theorie der Materialien; PGI-1 Physik Nanoskaliger Systeme; ER-C-1 Quanten-Theorie der Materialien; IAS-1 |
Published in: | Nature, 623 (2023) 7988, S. 718 - 723 |
Imprint: |
London [u.a.]
Nature Publ. Group
2023
|
DOI: |
10.34734/FZJ-2023-04806 |
DOI: |
10.1038/s41586-023-06658-5 |
Document Type: |
Journal Article |
Research Program: |
Grenzflächenstabilisierte Skyrmionen in Oxidstrukturen für die Skyrmionik Three-dimensional magnetization textures: Discovery and control on the nanoscale Topological Matter |
Link: |
OpenAccess |
Publikationsportal JuSER |
Please use the identifier: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06658-5 in citations.
Magnetic skyrmions and hopfions are topological solitons1—well-localized field configurations that have gained considerable attention over the past decade owing to their unique particle-like properties, which make them promising objects for spintronic applications. Skyrmions2,3 are two-dimensional solitons resembling vortex-like string structures that can penetrate an entire sample. Hopfions4,5,6,7,8,9 are three-dimensional solitons confined within a magnetic sample volume and can be considered as closed twisted skyrmion strings that take the shape of a ring in the simplest case. Despite extensive research on magnetic skyrmions, the direct observation of magnetic hopfions is challenging10 and has only been reported in a synthetic material11. Here we present direct observations of hopfions in crystals. In our experiment, we use transmission electron microscopy to observe hopfions forming coupled states with skyrmion strings in B20-type FeGe plates. We provide a protocol for nucleating such hopfion rings, which we verify using Lorentz imaging and electron holography. Our results are highly reproducible and in full agreement with micromagnetic simulations. We provide a unified skyrmion–hopfion homotopy classification and offer insight into the diversity of topological solitons in three-dimensional chiral magnets. |