Magnetoelectric antiferromagnets as platforms for the manipulation of solitons

Abstract

We study the magnetic dynamics of magnetoelectric antiferromagnetic thin films, where an unconventional boundary ferromagnetism coexists with the bulk Neel phase below the Neel temperature. The spin exchange between the two order parameters yields an effective low-energy theory that is formally equivalent to that of a ferrimagnet. Dynamics of domain walls and skyrmions are analyzed within the collective-variable approach, from which we conclude that they behave as massive particles moving in a viscous medium subjected to a gyrotropic force. We find that the film thickness can be used as a control parameter for the motion of these solitons. In this regard, it is shown that an external magnetic field can drive the dynamics of domain walls, whose terminal velocity is tunablewith the sample thickness. Furthermore, the classification of the skyrmion dynamics is sensitive to the spatial modulation of the sample thickness, which can be easily engineered with the present (thin-film) deposition techniques. Current-driven spin transfer can trigger drifting orbits of skyrmions, which can be utilized as racetracks for these magnetic textures.