Chiral Helimagnetism and One-Dimensional Magnetic Solitons in a Cr-Intercalated Transition Metal Dichalcogenide

Chiral magnets endowed with topological spin textures are expected to have promising applications in next-generation magnetic memories. In contrast to the well-studied 2D or 3D magnetic skyrmions, the authors report the discovery of 1D nontrivial magnetic solitons in a transition metal dichalcogenide 2H-TaS2 via precise intercalation of Cr elements. In the synthetic Cr1/3TaS2 (CTS) single crystal, the coupling of the strong spin-orbit interaction from TaS2 and the chiral arrangement of the magnetic Cr ions evoke a robust Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction. A magnetic helix having a short spatial period of approximate to 25 nm is observed in CTS via Lorentz transmission electron microscopy. In a magnetic field perpendicular to the helical axis, the helical spin structure transforms into a chiral soliton lattice (CSL) with the spin structure evolution being consistent with the chiral sine-Gordon theory, which opens promising perspectives for the application of CSL to fast-speed nonvolatile magnetic memories. This work introduces a new paradigm to soliton physics and provides an effective strategy for seeking novel 2D magnets.

Automated summary

The study reveals the discovery of novel magnetic solitons in a transition metal dichalcogenide 2H-TaS2 by introducing Cr elements, leading to the formation of a unique magnetic structure with one-dimensional nontrivial solitons. By incorporating Cr elements and the strong spin-orbit interaction from TaS2, a chiral arrangement of magnetic Cr ions is achieved, triggering a robust Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction.