Two-dimensional characterization of three-dimensional magnetic bubbles in Fe3Sn2 nanostructures

Natl Sci Rev. 2020 Aug 28;8(6):nwaa200. doi: 10.1093/nsr/nwaa200. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Abstract

We report differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of nanoscale magnetic objects in Kagome ferromagnet Fe3Sn2 nanostructures. This technique can directly detect the deflection angle of a focused electron beam, thus allowing clear identification of the real magnetic structures of two magnetic objects including three-ring and complex arch-shaped vortices in Fe3Sn2 by Lorentz-TEM imaging. Numerical calculations based on real material-specific parameters well reproduced the experimental results, showing that the magnetic objects can be attributed to integral magnetizations of two types of complex three-dimensional (3D) magnetic bubbles with depth-modulated spin twisting. Magnetic configurations obtained using the high-resolution TEM are generally considered as two-dimensional (2D) magnetic objects previously. Our results imply the importance of the integral magnetizations of underestimated 3D magnetic structures in 2D TEM magnetic characterizations.

Keywords: differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy; micromagnetics; skyrmion; skyrmion bubbles; three-dimensional magnetic structures.