Asymmetric hysteresis for probing Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction

TL;DR

This paper introduces a simple, quasi-static measurement method using asymmetric triangular microstructures to quantify interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) through shifts in magnetic hysteresis, facilitating rapid exploration of DMI in nanotech.

Contribution

The authors present a novel, shape-based measurement technique for directly quantifying interfacial DMI using asymmetric microstructures and hysteresis shifts, improving speed and simplicity over existing methods.

Findings

Demonstrated a significant hysteresis shift due to DMI and in-plane magnetic field.

Systematic shape variation allows robust determination of DMI strength and sign.

Method enables rapid, quantitative DMI assessment for new material systems.

Abstract

The interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) is intimately related to the prospect of superior domain-wall dynamics and the formation of magnetic skyrmions. Although some experimental efforts have been recently proposed to quantify these interactions and the underlying physics, it is still far from trivial to address the interfacial DMI. Inspired by the reported tilt of the magnetization of the side edge of a thin film structure, we here present a quasi-static, straightforward measurement tool. By using laterally asymmetric triangular-shaped microstructures, it is demonstrated that interfacial DMI combined with an in-plane magnetic field yields a unique and significant shift in magnetic hysteresis. By systematic variation of the shape of the triangular objects combined with a droplet model for domain nucleation, a robust value for the strength and sign of interfacial DMI is obtained. This method gives immediate and quantitative access to DMI, enabling a much faster exploration of new DMI systems for future nanotechnology.