Symmetry-Breaking Interlayer Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interactions in Synthetic Antiferromagnets
Abstract
The magnetic interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) in multi-layered thin films can lead to exotic chiral spin states, of paramount importance for future spintronic technologies. Interfacial DMI is normally manifested as an intralayer interaction, mediated via a paramagnetic heavy metal in systems lacking inversion symmetry. Here we show how, by designing synthetic antiferromagnets with canted magnetization states, it is also possible to observe interfacial interlayer-DMI at room temperature. The interlayer-DMI breaks the symmetry of the magnetic reversal process via the emergence of noncollinear spin states, which results in chiral exchange-biased hysteresis loops. This work opens up yet unexplored avenues for the development of new chiral spin textures in multi-layered thin film systems.
- Publication:
-
arXiv e-prints
- Pub Date:
- October 2018
- DOI:
- 10.48550/arXiv.1810.01801
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1810.01801
- Bibcode:
- 2018arXiv181001801F
- Keywords:
-
- Condensed Matter - Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
- E-Print:
- 15 pages, 4 figures