Observation of long-range ferromagnetism via anomalous supercurrents in a spin-orbit coupled superconductor

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that anomalous supercurrents in a spin-orbit coupled superconductor can mediate long-range ferromagnetism, revealing a new mechanism for magnetic order driven by superconductivity and spin-orbit interactions.

Contribution

It provides experimental evidence that surface anomalous supercurrents can induce and sustain ferromagnetic order in a superconductor with strong spin-orbit coupling.

Findings

Remanent flux patterns indicate ferromagnetic order mediated by supercurrents.

Magnetic order appears above a current threshold and exhibits hysteresis.

Magnetization diminishes with temperature and vanishes above critical temperature.

Abstract

Conventional superconductors naturally disfavor ferromagnetism because the supercurrent-carrying electrons are paired into anti-parallel spin singlets. In superconductors with strong Rashba spin-orbit coupling, impurity magnetic moments induce supercurrents through the spin-galvanic effect. As a result, long-range ferromagnetic interaction among the impurity moments may be mediated through such anomalous supercurrents in a similar fashion as in itinerant ferromagnets. Fe(Se,Te) is such a superconductor with topological surface bands, previously shown to exhibit quantum anomalous vortices around impurity spins. Here, we take advantage of the flux sensitivity of scanning superconducting quantum interference devices to investigate superconducting Fe(Se,Te) in the regime where supercurrents around impurities overlap. We find homogeneous remanent flux patterns after applying a supercurrent through the sample. The patterns are consistent with anomalous edge and bulk supercurrents generated by in-plane magnetization, which occur above a current threshold and follow hysteresis loops reminiscent of those of a ferromagnet. Similar long-range magnetic orders can be generated by Meissner current under a small out-of-plane magnetic field. The magnetization weakens with increasing temperature and disappears after thermal cycling to above superconducting critical temperature; further suggesting superconductivity is central to establishing and maintaining the magnetic order. These observations demonstrate surface anomalous supercurrents as a mediator for ferromagnetism in a spin-orbit coupled superconductor, which may potentially be utilized for low-power cryogenic memory.