Lisa Marie-Kern

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Controlling magnetic properties with precision is a central goal in magnetism and spintronics,
offering insights into fundamental magnetic interactions as well as pathways to high-density
data storage and low-power processing. In particular, shaping magnetic energy landscapes has
recently gained momentum as a powerful strategy to spatially guide spin textures and control
their dynamics.
I will present our work on the controlled manipulation of topologically non-trivial spin textures,
including skyrmions and higher-order variants, using tailored magnetic anisotropy landscapes
created via local ion irradiation. Anisotropy engineering proves effective for magnetic field-,
spin torque- and laser-driven control of spin textures, and therefore constitutes a versatile
platform bridging emergent magnetic phenomena and spintronic functionality. Using high-
resolution x-ray imaging, we demonstrated nanometer spatial control over skyrmion nucleation
sites, motion paths and complex magnetization dynamics. Recently, we also realized skyrmion-
skyrmion interactions in controlled collisions as well as in collective ensembles within higher-
order skyrmion bags.
Such real-space experiments allow us to uncover fundamental aspects of topological charge
and explore the potential of topological textures for logic operations and unconventional
computing. The achieved level of control is readily transferable across material classes, offering
exciting opportunities to explore emergent magnetic phenomena on ultrasmall length and
ultrafast time scales.

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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
PH2
Contact: Erwann Bocquillon / Matteo Cacco