Disentangling electrical switching of antiferromagnetic NiO using high magnetic fields

TL;DR

This study uses high magnetic fields to distinguish magnetic from non-magnetic effects in the electrical switching of NiO antiferromagnetic films, advancing understanding in AF spintronics.

Contribution

It introduces a method combining magnetic fields and electrical measurements to separate magnetic and non-magnetic switching effects in AF materials.

Findings

Magnetic fields suppress magnetic switching components

Non-magnetic effects remain unaffected by magnetic fields

The approach enables clearer analysis of AF switching mechanisms

Abstract

Recent demonstrations of the electrical switching of antiferromagnets (AFs) have given an enormous impulse to the field of AF spintronics. Many of these observations are plagued by non-magnetic effects that are very difficult to distinguish from the actual magnetic ones. Here, we study the electrical switching of thin (5 nm) NiO films in Pt/NiO devices using magnetic fields up to 15 T to quantitatively disentangle these magnetic and non-magnetic effects. We demonstrate that these fields suppress the magnetic components of the electrical switching of NiO, but leave the non-magnetic components intact. Using a monodomainization model the contributions are separated, showing how they behave as a function of the current density. These results show that combining electrical methods and strong magnetic fields can be an invaluable tool for AF spintronics, allowing for implementing and studying electrical switching of AFs in more complex systems.