Direct imaging of electrical switching of antiferromagnetic Néel order in <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mi>α</mml:mi><mml:mtext>−</mml:mtext><mml:msub><mml:mrow><mml:msub><mml:mi>Fe</mml:mi><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msub><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">O</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:mrow></mml:math> epitaxial films

Abstract

X rays have been used to image the spin directions in an antiferromagnetic thin film of hematite ($\ensuremath{\alpha}$-Fe${}_{2}$O${}_{3}$) and show how they reorient in response to electrical pulses. Spin switching is shown to depend on the current direction and occurs even outside the current path. The results here show that, in addition to any direct interaction between the electrical current and the spins, thermal effects lead to spin reorientation, highlighting the delicate balance of interactions important to understanding the physics of current-induced switching in antiferromagnets.

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