title: Room-Temperature Current-Induced Generation and Motion of sub-100 nm Skyrmions.
abstract: Magnetic skyrmions are nanoscale windings of the spin configuration that hold great promise for technology due to their topology-related properties and extremely reduced sizes. After the recent observation at room temperature of sub-100 nm skyrmions stabilized by interfacial chiral interaction in magnetic multilayers, several pending questions remain to be solved, notably about the means to nucleate individual compact skyrmions or the exact nature of their motion. In this study, a method leading to the formation of magnetic skyrmions in a micrometer-sized track using homogeneous current injection is evidenced. Spin-transfer-induced motion of these small electrical-current-generated skyrmions is then demonstrated and the role of the out-of-plane magnetic field in the stabilization of the moving skyrmions is also analyzed. The results of these experimental observations of spin torque induced motion are compared to micromagnetic simulations reproducing a granular type, nonuniform magnetic multilayer in order to address the particularly important role of the magnetic inhomogeneities on the current-induced motion of sub-100 nm skyrmions for which the material grains size is comparable to the skyrmion diameter.
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Legrand
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Maccariello
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Reyren
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Karin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.affiliation: School of Computer Science, University of Manchester , Manchester M13 9PL, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Christoforos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moutafis
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Constance
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moreau-Luchaire
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Collin
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Karim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bouzehouane
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-0272-3651
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cros
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique, CNRS, Thales , Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau 91767, France.
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fert
keywords: Skyrmion; current−induced motion; magnetic multilayers; micromagnetics; room-temperature imaging; spin−orbit torque