A light induced metastable magnetic texture uncovered by in-situ Lorentz microscopy

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of a light-induced, metastable magnetic texture with a vortex-antivortex network exhibiting glass-like properties, revealing complex ordering in optically driven magnetic systems.

Contribution

It uncovers a novel metastable magnetic state induced by light, characterized by a dense vortex network, advancing understanding of ultrafast non-equilibrium magnetic phenomena.

Findings

Observation of a light-induced metastable magnetic texture.

The texture exhibits glass-like properties.

Emergence of complex ordering regimes in optically driven systems.

Abstract

Magnetic topological defects, including vortices and Skyrmions, can be stabilized as equilibrium structures by tuning intrinsic magnetic interactions and stray field geometries. Here, employing rapid quench conditions, we report the observation of a light-induced metastable magnetic texture, which consists of a dense nanoscale network of vortices and antivortices and exhibits glass-like properties. Our results highlight the emergence of complex ordering regimes in optically driven magnetic systems, opening up new pathways to harness ultrafast far-from-equilibrium relaxation processes.