| Researchers from Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (LPS), (CNRS/Université Paris-Saclay) have identified a subtle magnetic interaction that imposes a preferred orientation on magnetic structures in the Fe₅GeTe₂ material. This interaction, essential for stabilizing chiral magnetic textures such as skyrmions, originates primarily from the material’s core and not from its interfaces. Combined with low magnetic dissipation, this property makes Fe₅GeTe₂ a promising platform for next-generation spintronics. |
Two-dimensional magnetic materials are attracting growing interest for the development of next-generation information processing and storage technologies. Among them, Fe₅GeTe₂ stands out due to its ferromagnetic behavior close to room temperature and its compatibility with spintronic device architectures. One key question, however, remained unanswered: does this material host a Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction (DMI), a fundamental mechanism required to stabilize chiral magnetic textures such as skyrmions? These nanoscale magnetic objects are remarkably robust and are considered promising candidates for information carriers in future energy-efficient devices.
Researchers from the Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (CNRS/Université Paris-Saclay), in collaboration with SPINTEC (CEA-CNRS-Université Grenoble Alpes), have now provided a direct answer. Using Brillouin light scattering spectroscopy, they performed the first direct measurement of the DMI in epitaxial Fe₅GeTe₂ thin films.
The experiments reveal a clearly measurable DMI with the same sign across all investigated film thicknesses. Unlike many magnetic systems in which the DMI originates from interfaces, its magnitude shows only a weak dependence on film thickness. This result indicates that the interaction primarily originates from the internal crystal structure of the material. The observations are consistent with a specific ordering of iron atoms within the crystal lattice, which locally breaks inversion symmetry.
The study also demonstrates low magnetic dissipation, a property that facilitates the efficient propagation of spin waves and magnetic textures. The combination of an intrinsic chiral interaction and low energy losses makes Fe₅GeTe₂ a particularly attractive platform for investigating skyrmion dynamics and developing future spintronic devices.
Contributors
João Sampaio, Antoine Pascaud, Edgar Quero, André Thiaville and Alexandra Mougin, Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (LPS, CNRS / Université Paris-Saclay)
Vincent Polewczyk, Alain Marty and Frédéric Bonell, SPINTEC (CEA / CNRS / Université Grenoble Alpes)
Funding
French National Research Agency (ANR): ELMAX, NEXT, FLAG-ERA MNEMOSYN, ESR/EQUIPEX+ 2D-MAG;
PEPR SPIN (France 2030): SPINMAT and CHIREX;
LabEx LANEF.
Reference
João Sampaio, Antoine Pascaud, Edgar Quero, André Thiaville, Vincent Polewczyk, Alain Marty, Frédéric Bonell and Alexandra Mougin,
Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya Interaction in Fe₅GeTe₂ Epitaxial Thin Films, Nano Letters (2025), DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c03547
Contact
João Sampaio, joao.sampaio@cnrs.fr