Temperature-dependent magnon torque in SrIrO3/NiO/ferromagnetic multilayers

Abstract

Magnetization switching driven by magnons is a promising technology capable of substantially decreasing energy dissipation and potential damage to spintronic devices. In this study, we investigated the temperature-dependent magnon torque effect in SrIrO3/NiO/ferromagnetic multilayers. It is found that the magnon-mediated damping-like spin–orbit torque (SOT) efficiency decreases with increasing temperature. Enhanced magnon transmission was observed in the vicinity of the blocking temperature of the NiO layer, which can be ascribed to the amplification of damping-like SOT efficiency by the spin fluctuations. More importantly, we have demonstrated that the magnon-mediated SOT is an effective method to manipulate a perpendicular magnetization, particularly using a critical switching current density that is pretty low, as evidenced by ∼ 4 × 105 A/cm2 for SrRuO3/NiO/SrIrO3 trilayers in this study. These findings suggest a promising avenue for the development of highly efficient spintronic devices operable through magnon currents.