Crystal Symmetry-Dependent In-Plane Hall Effect.

The Hall effect has played a vital role in unraveling the intricate properties of electron transport in solid materials. Here, we report on a crystal symmetry-dependent in-plane Hall effect (CIHE) observed in a CuPt/CoPt ferromagnetic heterostructure. Unlike the planar Hall effect (PHE), the CIHE in CuPt/CoPt strongly depends on the current flowing direction (ϕI) with respect to the crystal structure. It reaches its maximum when the current is applied along the low crystal-symmetry axes and vanishes when applied along the high crystal-symmetry axes, exhibiting an unconventional angular dependence of cos(3ϕI). Utilizing a symmetry analysis based on the Invariant Theory, we demonstrate that the CIHE can exist in magnetic crystals possessing C3v symmetry. Using a tight-binding model and realistic first-principles calculations on the metallic heterostructure, we find that the CIHE originates from the trigonal warping of the Fermi surface. Our observations highlight the critical role of crystal symmetry in generating new types of Hall effects.

ZnSe and ZnTe as tunnel barriers for Fe-based spin valves.

Owing to their use in the optoelectronic industry, we investigate whether ZnSe and ZnTe can be utilised as tunnel barrier materials in magnetic spin valves. We perform ab initio electronic structure and linear response transport calculations based on self-interaction-corrected density functional theory for both Fe/ZnSe/Fe and Fe/ZnTe/Fe junctions. In the Fe/ZnSe/Fe junction the transport is tunneling-like and a symmetry-filtering mechanism is at play, implying that only the majority spin electrons with Δ1 symmetry are transmitted with large probability, resulting in a potentially large tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) ratio. As such, the transport characteristics are similar to those of the Fe/MgO/Fe junction, although the TMR ratio is lower for tunnel barriers of similar thickness due to the smaller bandgap of ZnSe as compared to that of MgO. In the Fe/ZnTe/Fe junction the Fermi level is pinned at the bottom of the conduction band of ZnTe and only a giant magnetoresistance effect is found. Our results provide evidence that chalcogenide-based tunnel barriers can be utilised in spintronics devices.

Unconventional Robust Spin-Transfer Torque in Noncollinear Antiferromagnetic Junctions.

Ferromagnetic spin valves and tunneling junctions are crucial for spintronics applications and are one of the most fundamental spintronics devices. Motivated by the potential unique advantages of antiferromagnets for spintronics, we theoretically study here junctions built out of noncollinear antiferromagnets. We demonstrate a large and robust magnetoresistance and spin-transfer torque capable of ultrafast switching between parallel and antiparallel states of the junction. In addition, we show that a new type of self-generated torque appears in the noncollinear junctions.

Room-temperature high spin-orbit torque due to quantum confinement in sputtered BixSe(1-x) films.

The spin-orbit torque (SOT) that arises from materials with large spin-orbit coupling promises a path for ultralow power and fast magnetic-based storage and computational devices. We investigated the SOT from magnetron-sputtered BixSe(1-x) thin films in BixSe(1-x)/Co20Fe60B20 heterostructures by using d.c. planar Hall and spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance (ST-FMR) methods. Remarkably, the spin torque efficiency (θS) was determined to be as large as 18.62 ± 0.13 and 8.67 ± 1.08 using the d.c. planar Hall and ST-FMR methods, respectively. Moreover, switching of the perpendicular CoFeB multilayers using the SOT from the BixSe(1-x) was observed at room temperature with a low critical magnetization switching current density of 4.3 × 105 A cm-2. Quantum transport simulations using a realistic sp3 tight-binding model suggests that the high SOT in sputtered BixSe(1-x) is due to the quantum confinement effect with a charge-to-spin conversion efficiency that enhances with reduced size and dimensionality. The demonstrated θS, ease of growth of the films on a silicon substrate and successful growth and switching of perpendicular CoFeB multilayers on BixSe(1-x) films provide an avenue for the use of BixSe(1-x) as a spin density generator in SOT-based memory and logic devices.

Unidirectional Magnon-Driven Domain Wall Motion Due to the Interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction.

We demonstrate a unidirectional motion of a quasiparticle without explicit symmetry breaking along the space-time coordinate of the particle motion. This counterintuitive behavior originates from a combined action of two intrinsic asymmetries in the other two directions. We realize this idea with the magnon-driven motion of a magnetic domain wall in thin films with interfacial asymmetry. Contrary to previous studies, the domain wall moves along the same direction regardless of the magnon-flow direction. Our general symmetry analysis and numerical simulation reveal that the odd order contributions from the interfacial asymmetry is unidirectional, which is dominant over bidirectional contributions in the realistic regime. We develop a simple analytic theory on the unidirectional motion, which provides an insightful description of this counterintuitive phenomenon.

Ferromagnet-Free All-Electric Spin Hall Transistors.

The spin field-effect transistor, an essential building block for spin information processing, shows promise for energy-efficient computing. Despite steady progress, it suffers from a low-output signal because of low spin injection and detection efficiencies. We demonstrate that this low-output obstacle can be overcome by utilizing direct and inverse spin Hall effects for spin injection and detection, respectively, without a ferromagnetic component. The output voltage of our all-electric spin Hall transistor is about two orders of magnitude larger than that of previously reported spin transistors based on ferromagnets or quantum point contacts. Moreover, the symmetry of the spin Hall effect allows all-electric spin Hall transistors to effectively mimic n-type and p-type devices, opening a way of realizing the complementary functionality.

Cooperative Charge Pumping and Enhanced Skyrmion Mobility.

It is well known that moving magnetic textures may pump spin and charge currents along the direction of motion, a phenomenon called electronic pumping. Here, the electronic pumping arising from the steady motion of ferromagnetic skyrmions is investigated by solving the time evolution of the Schrödinger equation implemented on a tight-binding model with the statistical physics of the many-body problem. In contrast with rigid one-dimensional magnetic textures, we show that steadily moving magnetic skyrmions are able to pump large dc currents. This ability arises from their nontrivial magnetic topology, i.e., the coexistence of the spin-motive force and the topological Hall effect. Based on an adiabatic scattering theory, we compute the pumped current and demonstrate that it scales with the reflection coefficient of the conduction electrons against the skyrmion. In other words, in the semiclassical limit, reducing the size of the skyrmion and the width of the nanowire enhances this effect, making it scalable. We propose that such a phenomenon can be exploited in the context of racetrack devices, where the electronic pumping enhances the collective motion of the train of skyrmions.

Spin Hall and Spin Swapping Torques in Diffusive Ferromagnets.

A complete set of the generalized drift-diffusion equations for a coupled charge and spin dynamics in ferromagnets in the presence of extrinsic spin-orbit coupling is derived from the quantum kinetic approach, covering major transport phenomena, such as the spin and anomalous Hall effects, spin swapping, spin precession, and relaxation processes. We argue that the spin swapping effect in ferromagnets is enhanced due to spin polarization, while the overall spin texture induced by the interplay of spin-orbital and spin precession effects displays a complex spatial dependence that can be exploited to generate torques and nucleate or propagate domain walls in centrosymmetric geometries without the use of external polarizers, as opposed to the conventional understanding of spin-orbit mediated torques.

Chiral damping of magnetic domain walls.

Structural symmetry breaking in magnetic materials is responsible for the existence of multiferroics, current-induced spin-orbit torques and some topological magnetic structures. In this Letter we report that the structural inversion asymmetry (SIA) gives rise to a chiral damping mechanism, which is evidenced by measuring the field-driven domain-wall (DW) motion in perpendicularly magnetized asymmetric Pt/Co/Pt trilayers. The DW dynamics associated with the chiral damping and those with Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) exhibit identical spatial symmetry. However, both scenarios are differentiated by their time reversal properties: whereas DMI is a conservative effect that can be modelled by an effective field, the chiral damping is purely dissipative and has no influence on the equilibrium magnetic texture. When the DW motion is modulated by an in-plane magnetic field, it reveals the structure of the internal fields experienced by the DWs, allowing one to distinguish the physical mechanism. The chiral damping enriches the spectrum of physical phenomena engendered by the SIA, and is essential for conceiving DW and skyrmion devices owing to its coexistence with DMI (ref. ).

Enhanced Spin-Orbit Torque via Modulation of Spin Current Absorption.

The magnitude of spin-orbit torque (SOT), exerted to a ferromagnet (FM) from an adjacent heavy metal (HM), strongly depends on the amount of spin current absorbed in the FM. We exploit the large spin absorption at the Ru interface to manipulate the SOTs in HM/FM/Ru multilayers. While the FM thickness is smaller than its spin dephasing length of 1.2 nm, the top Ru layer largely boosts the absorption of spin currents into the FM layer and substantially enhances the strength of SOT acting on the FM. Spin-pumping experiments induced by ferromagnetic resonance support our conclusions that the observed increase in the SOT efficiency can be attributed to an enhancement of the spin-current absorption. A theoretical model that considers both reflected and transmitted mixing conductances at the two interfaces of FM is developed to explain the results.

Enhanced Nonadiabaticity in Vortex Cores due to the Emergent Hall Effect.

We present a combined theoretical and experimental study, investigating the origin of the enhanced nonadiabaticity of magnetic vortex cores. Scanning transmission x-ray microscopy is used to image the vortex core gyration dynamically to measure the nonadiabaticity with high precision, including a high confidence upper bound. We show theoretically, that the large nonadiabaticity parameter observed experimentally can be explained by the presence of local spin currents arising from a texture induced emergent Hall effect. This study demonstrates that the magnetic damping α and nonadiabaticity parameter ß are very sensitive to the topology of the magnetic textures, resulting in an enhanced ratio (ß/α>1) in magnetic vortex cores or Skyrmions.

Relativistic Néel-order fields induced by electrical current in antiferromagnets.

We predict that a lateral electrical current in antiferromagnets can induce nonequilibrium Néel-order fields, i.e., fields whose sign alternates between the spin sublattices, which can trigger ultrafast spin-axis reorientation. Based on microscopic transport theory calculations we identify staggered current-induced fields analogous to the intraband and to the intrinsic interband spin-orbit fields previously reported in ferromagnets with a broken inversion-symmetry crystal. To illustrate their rich physics and utility, we consider bulk Mn(2)Au with the two spin sublattices forming inversion partners, and a 2D square-lattice antiferromagnet with broken structural inversion symmetry modeled by a Rashba spin-orbit coupling. We propose an antiferromagnetic memory device with electrical writing and reading.

Observation of a Higher-Order End Topological Insulator in a Real Projective Lattice.

The modern theory of quantized polarization has recently extended from 1D dipole moment to multipole moment, leading to the development from conventional topological insulators (TIs) to higher-order TIs, i.e., from the bulk polarization as primary topological index, to the fractional corner charge as secondary topological index. The authors here extend this development by theoretically discovering a higher-order end TI (HOETI) in a real projective lattice and experimentally verifying the prediction using topolectric circuits. A HOETI realizes a dipole-symmetry-protected phase in a higher-dimensional space (conventionally in one dimension), which manifests as 0D topologically protected end states and a fractional end charge. The discovered bulk-end correspondence reveals that the fractional end charge, which is proportional to the bulk topological invariant, can serve as a generic bulk probe of higher-order topology. The authors identify the HOETI experimentally by the presence of localized end states and a fractional end charge. The results demonstrate the existence of fractional charges in non-Euclidean manifolds and open new avenues for understanding the interplay between topological obstructions in real and momentum space.

Reconfigurable spin current transmission and magnon-magnon coupling in hybrid ferrimagnetic insulators.

Coherent spin waves possess immense potential in wave-based information computation, storage, and transmission with high fidelity and ultra-low energy consumption. However, despite their seminal importance for magnonic devices, there is a paucity of both structural prototypes and theoretical frameworks that regulate the spin current transmission and magnon hybridization mediated by coherent spin waves. Here, we demonstrate reconfigurable coherent spin current transmission, as well as magnon-magnon coupling, in a hybrid ferrimagnetic heterostructure comprising epitaxial Gd3Fe5O12 and Y3Fe5O12 insulators. By adjusting the compensated moment in Gd3Fe5O12, magnon-magnon coupling was achieved and engineered with pronounced anticrossings between two Kittel modes, accompanied by divergent dissipative coupling approaching the magnetic compensation temperature of Gd3Fe5O12 (TM,GdIG), which were modeled by coherent spin pumping. Remarkably, we further identified, both experimentally and theoretically, a drastic variation in the coherent spin wave-mediated spin current across TM,GdIG, which manifested as a strong dependence on the relative alignment of magnetic moments. Our findings provide significant fundamental insight into the reconfiguration of coherent spin waves and offer a new route towards constructing artificial magnonic architectures.

Pauli spin blockade and the ultrasmall magnetic field effect.

Based on the spin-blockade model for organic magnetoresistance, we present an analytic expression for the polaron-bipolaron transition rate, taking into account the effective nuclear fields on the two sites. We reveal the physics behind the qualitatively different magnetoconductance line shapes observed in experiment, as well as the ultrasmall magnetic field effect (USFE). Since our findings agree in detail with recent experiments, they also indirectly provide support for the spin-blockade interpretation of organic magnetoresistance. In addition, we predict the existence of a similar USFE in semiconductor double quantum dots tuned to the spin-blockade regime.

Spin-orbit torques in Co/Pd multilayer nanowires.

Current induced spin-orbit torques have been studied in ferromagnetic nanowires made of 20 nm thick Co/Pd multilayers with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Using Hall voltage and lock-in measurements, it is found that upon injection of an electric current both in-plane (Slonczewski-like) and perpendicular (fieldlike) torques build up in the nanowire. The torque efficiencies are found to be as large as 1.17 and 5 kOe at 10(8) A/cm2 for the in-plane and perpendicular components, respectively, which is surprisingly comparable to previous studies in ultrathin (∼1 nm) magnetic bilayers. We show that this result cannot be explained solely by spin Hall effect induced torque at the outer interfaces, indicating a probable contribution of the bulk of the Co/Pd multilayer.

Diffusive spin dynamics in ferromagnetic thin films with a Rashba interaction.

In a ferromagnetic metal layer, the coupled charge and spin diffusion equations are obtained in the presence of both Rashba spin-orbit interaction and magnetism. The misalignment between the magnetization and the nonequilibrium spin density induced by the Rashba field gives rise to Rashba spin torque acting on the ferromagnetic order parameter. In a general form, we find that the Rashba torque consists of both in-plane and out-of-plane components, i.e., T=T(perpendicular)y^×m^+T(parallel)m^×(y^×m^). Numerical simulations on a two-dimensional nanowire consider the impact of diffusion on the Rashba torque and reveal a large enhancement to the ratio T(parallel)/T(perpendicular) for thin wires. Our theory provides an explanation for the mechanism driving the magnetization switching in a single ferromagnet as observed in the recent experiments.

Spin relaxation in InGaN quantum disks in GaN nanowires.

The spin relaxation time of photoinduced conduction electrons has been measured in InGaN quantum disks in GaN nanowires as a function of temperature and In composition in the disks. The relaxation times are of the order of ∼100 ps at 300 K and are weakly dependent on temperature. Theoretical considerations show that the Elliott-Yafet scattering mechanism is essentially absent in these materials and the results are interpreted in terms of the D'yakonov-Perel' relaxation mechanism in the presence of Rashba spin-orbit coupling of the wurtzite structure. The calculated spin relaxation times are in good agreement with the measured values.

Magnonic Metamaterials for Spin-Wave Control with Inhomogeneous Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interactions.

A magnonic metamaterial in the presence of spatially modulated Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction is theoretically proposed and demonstrated by micromagnetic simulations. By analogy to the fields of photonics, we first establish magnonic Snell's law for spin waves passing through an interface between two media with different dispersion relations due to different Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions. Based on magnonic Snell's law, we find that spin waves can experience total internal reflection. The critical angle of total internal reflection is strongly dependent on the sign and strength of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction. Furthermore, spin-wave beam fiber and spin-wave lens are designed by utilizing the artificial magnonic metamaterials with inhomogeneous Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions. Our findings open up a rich field of spin waves manipulation for prospective applications in magnonics.

Unconventional Spin Pumping and Magnetic Damping in an Insulating Compensated Ferrimagnet.

Recently, the interest in spin pumping (SP) has escalated from ferromagnets into antiferromagnetic systems, potentially enabling fundamental physics and magnonic applications. Compensated ferrimagnets are considered alternative platforms for bridging ferro- and antiferromagnets, but their SP and the associated magnetic damping have been largely overlooked so far despite their seminal importance for magnonics. Herein, an unconventional SP together with magnetic damping in an insulating compensated ferrimagnet Gd3 Fe5 O12 (GdIG) is reported. Remarkably, the divergence of the nonlocal effective magnetic damping induced by SP close to the compensation temperature in GdIG/Cu/Pt heterostructures is identified unambiguously. Furthermore, the coherent and incoherent spin currents, generated by SP and the spin Seebeck effect, respectively, undergo a distinct direction change with the variation of temperature. The physical mechanisms underlying these observations are self-consistently clarified by the ferrimagnetic counterpart of SP and the handedness-related spin-wave spectra. The findings broaden the conventional paradigm of the ferromagnetic SP model and open new opportunities for exploring the ferrimagnetic magnonic devices.