Modulation of skyrmionic magnetic textures in two-dimensional vdW materials and their heterostructures

Abstract

The intrinsic magnetism observed in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) materials provides a unique opportunity for exploring the 2D topological magnetic textures, in particular skyrmionic magnetic textures (SMTs) including skyrmion and its topological equivalents. Since the experimental discovery of skyrmions in the 2D vdW materials and their heterostructures, a critical challenge lies in the control of these SMTs to translate their intriguing features into spintronic applications. Here, we review the recent experimental and theoretical progress on the modulations of SMTs in 2D vdW monolayer materials and their heterostructures. Besides well-established basic modulation factors including temperature, magnetic field and sample thickness, we present the experimental realization of mobility and transition driven by electric current, and the theoretical prediction of diverse magnetoelectric modulations by electric field. Considering the 2D character of vdW layered materials, strain and stacking style are also efficient approaches to tune the magnetic textures.