All-Optical Magnetothermoelastic Skyrmion Motion

Abstract

The author's calculations show that magnetic skyrmions in metallic multilayers such as Co/Pt can be controllably moved on surfaces, simply by using a focused laser beam. Temperature gradients at the laser spot directly yield skyrmion motion, due to temperature dependence of magnetic parameters, but another contribution can be even more important: Thermoelastic lattice expansion results in a strain-induced local gradient in magnetic anisotropy. This method of skyrmion displacement allows full control of motion over a magnetic surface, with a possible path to MEMS-VCSEL on-chip integration.