# Skyrmion meets magnetic tunnel junction: an efficient way for electrical skyrmion detection investigated by ab initio theory

## TL;DR

This study demonstrates that magnetic tunnel junctions can effectively detect skyrmions electrically through scattering effects, with efficiency influenced by material choice, offering a promising approach for skyrmion-based technologies.

## Contribution

It introduces a novel ab initio method to analyze skyrmion detection via magnetoresistive transport in magnetic tunnel junctions, highlighting the role of scattering effects.

## Key findings

- Magnetic tunnel junctions enable electrical detection of skyrmions.
- Detection efficiency varies significantly with material selection.
- Scattering between k-states is key to the detection mechanism.

## Abstract

In our proof-of-principle study we examine the influence of skyrmions on magnetoresistive transport. In particular, we show that magnetic tunnel junctions are a technologically appealing and promising way for electrical detection of non-collinear magnetic structures. The calculated effect is shown to originate from scattering between different k-states and cannot be identified through densities of states alone. Our results suggest that the detection efficiency strongly depends on the utilized materials.