Symmetry Violation in a Superconducting Film with a Square Array of Ferromagnetic Dots

TL;DR

This paper investigates how a square array of magnetic dots on a superconducting film causes spontaneous symmetry breaking in vortex arrangements, influenced by magnetization and dot size.

Contribution

It reveals the spontaneous symmetry violation in vortex configurations induced by magnetic dots in a superconducting film, detailing the dependence on magnetization and dot size.

Findings

Vortices form directly under magnetic dots and antivortices between them.

Symmetry of the dot array is spontaneously broken by vortex arrangements.

Vortex and antivortex positions depend on magnetization and dot size.

Abstract

We study the equilibrium state of a superconducting film covered with a regular square array of perpendicularly magnetized magnetic dots. The dots induce vortices in the film directly under them and antivortices between the dots. We show that the symmetry of the dot array is spontaneously violated by the vortices. The positions of the vortices and the antivortices depend on the magnetization and the size of the dots.