Soliton locking phenomenon over finite magnetic field region in the monoaxial chiral magnet CrNb3S6

Abstract

Previous magnetic measurements for the chiral magnet CrNb3S6 have shown that the soliton penetration and soliton dissipation in the chiral soliton lattice state strongly depend on the crystal's size and shape. We performed magnetic measurements for a thin single crystal of CrNb3S6 with a thickness 3 μm, permitting the existence of approximately 60 solitons, and observed the magnetization (M)—magnetic field (H) curve with a remarkable full M–H loop. By investigating the minor loop of the M–H curve in detail, we found that the inside of the full M–H loop allows an infinite number of quasi-stable states for each eigen number of solitons, utilizing a non-negligible distribution of the thickness around 3 μm. This study reveals that in a microcrystal with a chiral axis length of a few micrometers, any magnetic state with an arbitrary soliton number can be created in a certain H range within the full M–H loop.