Detection and control of electronic orbital magnetism by spin waves in honeycomb ferromagnets

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how spin waves can control electronic orbital magnetism in honeycomb ferromagnets through scalar spin chirality, with potential for experimental detection and tunable magnetic properties.

Contribution

It introduces a mechanism for controlling electronic orbital magnetism via spin waves and explores its dependence on various magnetic interactions and external fields.

Findings

Electronic magnon-driven orbital magnetization is highly sensitive to magnonic excitations.

Orbital magnetism and Nernst transport can be tuned by Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya and Kitaev interactions.

Proposes experimental detection methods like Kerr effect and electron microscopy.

Abstract

Exploring and manipulating the orbital degrees of freedom in solids has become a fascinating research topic in modern magnetism. Here, we demonstrate that spin waves can provide a way to control electronic orbital magnetism by the mechanism of scalar spin chirality, allowing for experimental detection using techniques such as the magneto-optical Kerr effect and scanning transmission electron microscopy. By applying linear spin wave theory, we uncover that electronic magnon-driven orbital magnetization is extremely sensitive to the character of the magnonic excitations. Furthermore, we show that both the induced electronic orbital magnetism and the Nernst transport properties of the orbital angular momentum can be regulated by the strength of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, Kitaev interaction, as well as the direction and magnitude of the external magnetic field. We argue that magnon-mediated electronic orbital magnetism presents an emergent variable which has to be taken into account when considering the physics of coupling magnonic excitiations to phonons and light.