Magnetic skyrmions are topologically nontrivial particles with a potential application as information elements in future spintronic device architectures [1, 2]. While they are commonly portrayed as two dimensional objects, in reality magnetic skyrmions are thought to exist as elongated, tube-like objects extending through the thickness of the host material, as seen in Fig. 1 [3]. These structures are theorised to exhibit Bloch points, responsible for the topological unwinding of skyrmions [4]. The study of this skyrmion tube state (SkT) is vital for furthering the understanding of skyrmion formation and dynamics for future applications. However, direct experimental imaging of skyrmion tubes has yet to be reported. Here, we demonstrate the real-space observation of skyrmion tubes in a lamella of FeGe using resonant magnetic x-ray imaging and comparative micromagnetic simulations, the horizontal stripes seen in Fig. 2, confirming their extended structure [5]. The formation of these structures at the edge of the sample highlights the importance of confinement and edge effects in the stabilisation of the SkT state, opening the door to further investigation into this unexplored dimension of the skyrmion spin texture.References: [1] Rößler, U. K., Bogdanov, A. N. & Pfleiderer, C. Spontaneous skyrmion ground states in magnetic metals. Nature 442, 797 (2006). [2] Nagaosa, N. & Tokura, Y. Topological properties and dynamics of magnetic skyrmions. Nat. Nanotechnol. 8, 899 (2013). [3] Seki, S. et al. Propagation dynamics of spin excitations along skyrmion strings. Nat. Commun. 11, 256 (2020). [4] Milde, P. et al. Unwinding of a skyrmion lattice by magnetic monopoles. Science 340, 1076 (2013). [5] Birch, M. et al. Real-space imaging of confined magnetic skyrmion tubes. Nat. Commun. 11, 1726 (2020).

Real-Space Imaging of Confined Magnetic Skyrmion Tubes INVITED

I3: Skyrmion Imaging

technical paper

The 65th Annual Conference on Magnetism and Magnetic Materials (MMM 2020) was held in a virtual form. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its associated uncertainty about international travel and the ability to gather in large groups, meant that the Steering Committee decided to cancel the face-to-face meeting that had been planned in Palm Beach, Florida November 2-6, 2020.

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Real-Space Imaging of Confined Magnetic Skyrmion Tubes INVITED

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