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The spin chemical potential characterizes the tendency of spins to diffuse. Probing this quantity could provide insight into materials such as magnetic insulators and spin liquids and aid optimization of spintronic devices. Here we introduce single-spin magnetometry as a generic platform for nonperturbative, nanoscale characterization of spin chemical potentials. We experimentally realize this platform using diamond nitrogen-vacancy centers and use it to investigate magnons in a magnetic insulator, finding that the magnon chemical potential can be controlled by driving the system’s ferromagnetic resonance. We introduce a symmetry-based two-fluid theory describing the underlying magnon processes, measure the local thermomagnonic torque, and illustrate the detection sensitivity using electrically controlled spin injection. Our results pave the way for nanoscale control and imaging of spin transport in mesoscopic systems.

Recent demonstrations of magnetization switching induced by in-plane current in heavy metal/ferromagnetic heterostructures (HMFHs) have drawn great attention to spin torques arising from large spin–orbit coupling (SOC). Given the intrinsic strong SOC, topological insulators (TIs) are expected to be promising candidates for exploring spin–orbit torque (SOT)-related physics. Here we demonstrate experimentally the magnetization switching through giant SOT induced by an in-plane current in a chromium-doped TI bilayer heterostructure. The critical current density required for switching is below 8.9 × 10 4 A cm −2 at 1.9 K. Moreover, the SOT is calibrated by measuring the effective spin–orbit field using second-harmonic methods. The effective field to current ratio and the spin-Hall angle tangent are almost three orders of magnitude larger than those reported for HMFHs. The giant SOT and efficient current-induced magnetization switching exhibited by the bilayer heterostructure may lead to innovative spintronics applications such as ultralow power dissipation memory and logic devices. Heterostructures consisting of ferromagnets and heavy metals have become a focus of interest because their strong spin–orbit coupling allows for efficient current-induced magnetization switching phenomena. Now, a magnetically doped topological insulator bilayer is shown to display a range of appealing characteristics for current-induced magnetization switching, including a significantly enhanced efficiency.

The formation of soap bubbles from thin films is accompanied by topological transitions. Here we show how a magnetic topological structure, a skyrmion bubble, can be generated in a solid-state system in a similar manner. Using an inhomogeneous in-plane current in a system with broken inversion symmetry, we experimentally \"blow\" magnetic skyrmion bubbles from a geometrical constriction. The presence of a spatially divergent spin-orbit torque gives rise to instabilities of the magnetic domain structures that are reminiscent of Rayleigh-Plateau instabilities in fluid flows. We determine a phase diagram for skyrmion formation and reveal the efficient manipulation of these dynamically created skyrmions, including depinning and motion. The demonstrated current-driven transformation from stripe domains to magnetic skyrmion bubbles could lead to progress in skyrmion-based spintronics.

Magnetization switching by current-induced spin–orbit torques is of great interest due to its potential applications in ultralow-power memory and logic devices. The switching of ferromagnets with perpendicular magnetization is of particular technological relevance. However, in such materials, the presence of an in-plane external magnetic field is typically required to assist spin–orbit torque-driven switching and this is an obstacle for practical applications. Here, we report the switching of out-of-plane magnetized Ta/Co 20 Fe 60 B 20 /TaO x structures by spin–orbit torques driven by in-plane currents, without the need for any external magnetic fields. This is achieved by introducing a lateral structural asymmetry into our devices, which gives rise to a new field-like spin–orbit torque when in-plane current flows in these structures. The direction of the current-induced effective field corresponding to this field-like spin–orbit torque is out-of-plane, facilitating the switching of perpendicular magnets. Spin–orbit torques in a geometrically asymmetric device made from a perpendicularly magnetized ferromagnet can switch its magnetization without the assistance of an applied magnetic field.

Electric-field manipulation of magnetic order has proved of both fundamental and technological importance in spintronic devices. So far, electric-field control of ferromagnetism, magnetization and magnetic anisotropy has been explored in various magnetic materials, but the efficient electric-field control of spin–orbit torque (SOT) still remains elusive. Here, we report the effective electric-field control of a giant SOT in a Cr-doped topological insulator (TI) thin film using a top-gate field-effect transistor structure. The SOT strength can be modulated by a factor of four within the accessible gate voltage range, and it shows strong correlation with the spin-polarized surface current in the film. Furthermore, we demonstrate the magnetization switching by scanning gate voltage with constant current and in-plane magnetic field applied in the film. The effective electric-field control of SOT and the giant spin-torque efficiency in Cr-doped TI may lead to the development of energy-efficient gate-controlled spin-torque devices compatible with modern field-effect semiconductor technologies. Electric field control of spin–orbit torque and magnetization switching can be achieved in a Cr-doped topological insulator thin film incorporated in a field-effect transistor structure, promising gate-controlled spintronic applications.

Magnetic insulators (MIs) attract tremendous interest for spintronic applications due to low Gilbert damping and the absence of Ohmic loss. Spin-orbit torques (SOTs) on MIs are more intriguing than magnetic metals since SOTs cannot be transferred to MIs through direct injection of electron spins. Understanding of SOTs on MIs remains elusive, especially how SOTs scale with the MI film thickness. Here, we observe the critical role of dimensionality on the SOT efficiency by studying the MI layer thickness-dependent SOT efficiency in tungsten/thulium iron garnet (W/TmIG) bilayers. We show that the TmIG thin film evolves from two-dimensional to three-dimensional magnetic phase transitions as the thickness increases. We report the significant enhancement of the measured SOT efficiency as the TmIG thickness increases, which is attributed to the increase of the magnetic moment density. We demonstrate the current-induced SOT switching in the W/TmIG bilayers with a TmIG thickness up to 15 nm. The spin-orbit torque (SOT) induced magnetic switching makes metal/magnetic insulators bilayers preferred in the energy efficient spintronic applications. Here the authors show SOT switching in W/TmIG bilayers and reveal the dimension crossover of SOT as a function of TmIG thickness.

Van der Waals (vdW) magnet heterostructures have emerged as new platforms to explore exotic magnetic orders and quantum phenomena. Here, we study heterostructures of layered antiferromagnets, CrI 3 and CrCl 3 , with perpendicular and in-plane magnetic anisotropy, respectively. Using magneto-optical Kerr effect microscopy, we demonstrate out-of-plane magnetic order in the CrCl 3 layer proximal to CrI 3 , with ferromagnetic interfacial coupling between the two. Such an interlayer exchange field leads to higher critical temperature than that of either CrI 3 or CrCl 3 alone. We further demonstrate significant electric-field control of the coercivity, attributed to the naturally broken structural inversion symmetry of the heterostructure allowing unprecedented direct coupling between electric field and interfacial magnetism. These findings illustrate the opportunity to explore exotic magnetic phases and engineer spintronic devices in vdW heterostructures. One particularly useful feature of van der Waals materials is the ability to combine layers of different materials into a single heterostructure, which can have superior properties than any of the constituent materials alone. Here, Cheng et al. combine two interlayer-antiferromagnetic chromium trihalides, CrI 3 and CrCl 3 in close proximity, and demonstrate ferromagnetic coupling between them.

Manipulating magnetism by electric current is of great interest for both fundamental and technological reasons. Much effort has been dedicated to spin–orbit torques (SOTs) in metallic structures, while quantitative investigation of analogous phenomena in magnetic insulators remains challenging due to their low electrical conductivity. Here we address this challenge by exploiting the interaction of light with magnetic order, to directly measure SOTs in both metallic and insulating structures. The equivalency of optical and transport measurements is established by investigating a heavy-metal/ferromagnetic-metal device (Ta/CoFeB/MgO). Subsequently, SOTs are measured optically in the contrasting case of a magnetic-insulator/heavy-metal (YIG/Pt) heterostructure, where analogous transport measurements are not viable. We observe a large anti-damping torque in the YIG/Pt system, revealing its promise for spintronic device applications. Moreover, our results demonstrate that SOT physics is directly accessible by optical means in a range of materials, where transport measurements may not be possible. The study of spin orbit torques in insulating materials via conventional transport methods is restricted due to low electrical conductivity. Here, the authors use magneto-optical methods to measure spin orbit torques in ferromagnetic-insulator/heavy-metal heterostructures.

Moiré superlattices in van der Waals structures can be used to control the electronic properties of the material and can lead to emergent correlated and topological phenomena. Non-collinear states and domain structures have previously been observed in twisted van der Waals magnets, but the effective manipulation of the magnetic behaviour remains challenging. Here we report electrically tunable moiré magnetism in twisted double bilayers—that is, a bilayer plus a bilayer with a twist angle between them—of layered antiferromagnet chromium triiodide. Using magneto-optical Kerr effect microscopy, we observe the coexistence of antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic order with non-zero net magnetization—a hallmark of moiré magnetism. Such a magnetic state extends over a wide range of twist angles (with transitions at around 0° and above 20°) and exhibits a non-monotonic temperature dependence. We also demonstrate voltage-assisted magnetic switching. The observed non-trivial magnetic states, as well as control via twist angle, temperature and electrical gating, are supported by a simulated phase diagram of moiré magnetism. The magnetic state of twisted double bilayers of antiferromagnetic chromium triiodide can be controlled by electrical gating, twist angle and temperature.

Current-induced spin-orbit torques (SOTs) in structurally asymmetric multilayers have been used to efficiently manipulate magnetization. In a structure with vertical symmetry breaking, a damping-like SOT can deterministically switch a perpendicular magnet, provided an in-plane magnetic field is applied. Recently, it has been further demonstrated that the in-plane magnetic field can be eliminated by introducing a new type of perpendicular field-like SOT via incorporating a lateral structural asymmetry into the device. Typically, however, when a current is applied to such devices with combined vertical and lateral asymmetries, both the perpendicular field-like torque and the damping-like torque coexist, hence jointly affecting the magnetization switching behavior. Here, we study perpendicular magnetization switching driven by the combination of the perpendicular field-like and the damping-like SOTs, which exhibits deterministic switching mediated through domain wall propagation. It is demonstrated that the role of the damping-like SOT in the deterministic switching is highly dependent on the magnetization direction in the domain wall. By contrast, the perpendicular field-like SOT is solely determined by the relative orientation between the lateral structural asymmetry and the current direction, regardless of the magnetization direction in the domain wall. The experimental results further the understanding of SOTs-induced switching, with implications for spintronic devices.