Spontaneous atomic-scale magnetic skyrmion lattice in two dimensions

Skyrmions are topologically protected field configurations with particle-like properties that play an important role in various fields of science. Recently, skyrmions have been observed to be stabilized by an external magnetic field in bulk magnets. Here, we describe a two-dimensional square lattice...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature physics 2011-09, Vol.7 (9), p.713-718
Main Authors: Heinze, Stefan, von Bergmann, Kirsten, Menzel, Matthias, Brede, Jens, Kubetzka, André, Wiesendanger, Roland, Bihlmayer, Gustav, Blügel, Stefan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Atomic
Atomic force microscopy
Classical and Continuum Physics
Complex Systems
Condensed Matter Physics
Lattice theory
Lattices
Magnetic fields
Mathematical and Computational Physics
Mathematical models
Microscopy
Molecular
Optical and Plasma Physics
Particle physics
Physics
Physics and Astronomy
Surface layer
Texture
Theoretical
Two dimensional
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Summary:Skyrmions are topologically protected field configurations with particle-like properties that play an important role in various fields of science. Recently, skyrmions have been observed to be stabilized by an external magnetic field in bulk magnets. Here, we describe a two-dimensional square lattice of skyrmions on the atomic length scale as the magnetic ground state of a hexagonal Fe film of one-atomic-layer thickness on the Ir(111) surface. Using spin-polarized scanning tunnelling microscopy we can directly image this non-collinear spin texture in real space on the atomic scale and demonstrate that it is incommensurate to the underlying atomic lattice. With the aid of first-principles calculations, we develop a spin model on a discrete lattice that identifies the interplay of Heisenberg exchange, the four-spin and the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction as the microscopic origin of this magnetic state. Skyrmions are topologically protected field configurations that appear as solutions of continuous quantum-field theories. Recently, they have been observed in magnetic bulk alloys, where a lattice of skyrmions is stabilized by an external magnetic field. In contrast, this study finds evidence for a skyrmion lattice as a spontaneous ground state, encoded into a magnetic spin texture on the atomic scale.
ISSN:1745-2473
1745-2481
DOI:10.1038/nphys2045