Stiffness in vortex-like structures due to chirality-domains within a coupled helical rare-earth superlattice.

Abstract

Vortex domain walls poses chirality or ‘handedness’ which can be exploited to act as memory units by changing their polarity with electric field or driving/manupulating the vortex itself by electric currents in multiferroics. Recently, domain walls formed by one dimensional array of vortex—like structures have been theoretically predicted to exist in disordered rare-earth helical magnets with topological defects. Here, in this report, we have used a combination of two rare-earth metals, e.g. superlattice that leads to long range magnetic order despite their competing anisotropies along the out-of-plane (Er) and in-plane (Tb) directions. Probing the vertically correlated magnetic structures by off-specular polarized neutron scattering we confirm the existence of such magnetic vortex—like domains associated with magnetic helical ordering within the Er layers. The vortex—like structures are predicted to have opposite chirality, side—by—side, and are fairly unaffected by the introduction of magnetic ordering between the interfacial Tb layers and also with the increase in magnetic field which is a direct consequence of screening of the vorticity in the system due to a helical background. Overall, the stability of these vortices over a wide range of temperatures, fields and interfacial coupling, opens up the opportunity for fundamental chiral spintronics in unconventional systems.