Room Temperature Skyrmions in Strain-Engineered FeGe thin films

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Skyrmions are promising for low-energy, high-density information storage.
• Stabilizing the skyrmion lattice (SkX) phase above room temperature is critical for practical applications.
• The topological Hall effect aids in identifying skyrmion systems at higher temperatures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of tensile strain on FeGe thin films.
• To explore the potential for room-temperature skyrmion lattice phase stabilization.
• To characterize magnetic properties and topological Hall effect in strained FeGe.

Main Methods:

• Epitaxial growth of atomically ordered FeGe thin films on Ge(111) substrates.
• Application of approximately 4% tensile strain.
• Magnetic characterization, including Curie temperature determination.
• Measurement of the topological Hall effect across a temperature range.

Main Results:

• Tensile strain enhanced the Curie temperature of FeGe films to 350 K (from 278 K bulk).
• A strong topological Hall effect was observed from 10 K to 330 K.
• A significant increase in the topological Hall effect magnitude was noted at 330 K, near the Curie temperature.

Conclusions:

• Strained FeGe films exhibit significantly improved magnetic properties.
• The observed phenomena suggest the potential for a skyrmion lattice phase above room temperature in strained FeGe.
• This work paves the way for developing next-generation data storage technologies.