Skyrmions Under Control - FIB Irradiation as a Versatile Tool for Skyrmion Circuits

Magnetic data storage and processing offer certain advances over conventional technologies, amongst which non-volatility and low power operation are the most outstanding ones. Skyrmions are a promising candidate as a magnetic data carrier. However, the sputtering of skyrmion films and the control of the skyrmion nucleation, motion, and annihilation remains challenging. This article demonstrates that using optimized focused ion beam irradiation and annealing protocols enable to easily access the skyrmion phase in W/CoFeB/MgO thin-films. By analyzing ion beam engineered skyrmion hosting wires, excited by sub-100ns current pulses, possibilities to control skyrmion nucleation, guide their motion and control their annihilation are unfold. Overall, the key elements needed to develop extensive skyrmion networks are presented in this work. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.