Manipulation of magnetic topological textures via perpendicular strain and polarization in van der Waals magnetoelectric heterostructures
Zhong Shen, Shuai Dong, Xiaoyan Yao
Abstract
The multifunctional manipulation of magnetic topological textures such as skyrmions and bimerons in energy-efficient ways is of great importance for spintronic applications, but it is still a big challenge. Here, by first-principles calculations and atomistic simulations, the creation and annihilation of skyrmions/bimerons, as key operations for the reading and writing of information in spintronic devices, are achieved in a van der Waals magnetoelectric $\mathrm{CrISe}\text{/}{\mathrm{In}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$ heterostructure via perpendicular strain or electric field without an external magnetic field. In addition, bimeron-skyrmion conversion, size modulation, and reversible magnetization switching from in plane to out of plane could also be realized in magnetic-field-free ways. Moreover, the topological charge and morphology can be precisely controlled by a small magnetic field. The strong Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and tunable magnetic anisotropy energy in a wide window are found to play vital roles in such energy-efficient multifunctional manipulation, and the underlying physical mechanisms are elucidated. Our work predicts the $\mathrm{CrISe}\text{/}{\mathrm{In}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$ heterostructure to be an ideal platform to address this challenge in spintronic applications, and theoretically guides the low-dissipation multifunctional manipulation of magnetic topological textures.