James TAYLOR
In the field of antiferromagnetic spintronics, materials hosting topological bandstructure features are promising candidates to overcome the problem of the small ‘read-out’ signals typically exhibited by antiferromagnets. One such class of materials are the noncollinear antiferromagnets, whose chiral spin texture generates a large anomalous Hall effect (AHE). However, an outstanding challenge remains how to efficiently ‘write’ states to these materials; in other words, control their magnetic order parameter using spin torques.
After briefly re-introducing the structural, magnetic and electrical characterization of thin films of the noncollinear antiferromagnets Mn3Sn and Mn3Ir, we will build upon the talk presented at last year’s online workshop by reporting experimental studies of the current-driven switching of Mn3Sn. We propose that this occurs via a novel mechanism combining heat and angular momentum transfer, called ‘seeded’-spin-orbit torque. Finally, we will present a perspective for a new project that aims to begin exploring spin transport in these materials at the ultrafast timescale